Complaint Review: Honky Tonk Saloon Chesterland Ohio - Chesterland Ohio

The information in this report is a reslult of an exhaustive and cumulative research performed on the internet. There have been individuals that are freinds or associates of the Kanieski's that have tried to discredit the hundreds of reports that have amassed about these people. Through our research we have included dozens of links and refrences to many of the reports we are talking about. By filing this report it shows definative and absolute accurate information about the history of the Kanieski's and their many, many wrongful doings. Once and for all this report will enlighten the reader about the Kanieski's.

Running a Tab The Cleveland Scene Magazine 
A mother and son own three Flats clubs -- and a rep for stiffing the help.
 
Walter Novak

Ashu Howard was impressed by Krave's digs, but not by his paychecks. Bottle after bottle of pricey liquor reflects off the mirror behind Krave's expansive bar. They're arranged on three shelves, the tallest probably too high for short bartenders to reach. But it doesn't matter -- it's not the booze, it's the vibe that counts at Krave. That's what dazzled Ashu Howard from the start.

"The impression when you go in is 'This is a high-class nightclub,'" he says of the recently remodeled Flats hangout, which pumps high-energy house music across two dance floors, a VIP room, and a "Bedroom" lounge, complete with four posts and a mattress. "I worked in New York City for a long time, and I'd say it's as nice as any club there."

Howard had just moved back to his hometown after more than a decade as a floor manager in a Big Apple club. Landing a similar job in Cleveland would be perfect, he thought. And for a while, it was. He joined Krave as a bartender in late October and was promoted twice in his first month; by December, he was named general manager. Among his first duties was checking the 60 messages that had piled up on Krave's office phone. But when Howard pressed play, he was stunned by what he heard: Nearly every caller was demanding money from the club, he says. "Here I am in a brand-new job, and it's a really good deal," he remembers. "You're almost in denial. You don't want it to be true." But Howard's next month at Krave told the story. According to more than a dozen current and former employees who worked under Howard last fall, stiffing workers is a time-tested practice for Sandra and Chris Kanieski, the mother and son who operate Krave and two other Flats bars, Shark and the Beachcomber.

Robert Ramsey claims he worked upwards of 30 hours each week for more than a month, doing maintenance that was supposed to land him $6 an hour. "I didn't see a dime," he says.

John Abramczyk says he toiled at all three clubs for more than a month, averaging 50 hours a week. He walked after receiving only $100. "I guess they screwed everybody," says Abramczyk, recalling how former employees routinely stopped by seeking paychecks. "Every night someone would come in. It happened at Shark. It happened at Krave. It happened at Beachcomber."

Sandra Kanieski counters that all her employees are paid in full. "If you come to work and you do your job, then you get paid for that," she says. The Kanieskis' business history, however, suggests that things aren't always so cut-and-dried. The roll call of past bars they've run reads like the yellow pages: Blind Willy's, Boiler Room, Brick House, Hunt Club, Pulsations on the Water, Rock and Roll Bar, and Zanzibar, among others. They took over the venerable Flats club Fagan's in 2002 and ran it aground a year later.

According to court records, the Kanieskis' clubs have been successfully sued at least a dozen times over the past 15 years, mostly for withholding payment. Among the most egregious cases: A reggae band won a judgment of $4,500, and a pair of food suppliers were awarded $96,000. During the 1980s and '90s, Sandra Kanieski also operated an investment company that seems to have invested heavily in herself. In 1997, she was sentenced to 48 months in prison for fraud and ordered to pay more than $565,000 to seven clients who had entrusted their money to her. Chris was convicted of money-laundering in connection with the scheme. (He did not respond to interview requests.)
"That's all in the past," Sandra says. "What does one have to do with the other?"

Among the similarities, it appears, are underperforming businesses. The Kanieskis' three Flats clubs are only sparsely populated, even on Fridays and Saturdays. "They don't have much business," says a current bartender, who asked not to be named. "It's very poorly run." Perhaps not surprisingly, turnover is high. "We probably went through 10 barbacks and 5 or 6 bartenders within a month," says Eddie Meyers, who tended bar at Krave for seven weeks last fall. He says he averaged 50 hours a week at the bartender's wage of $2.25 an hour, but was paid only $200 in all. (Sandra Kanieski says Meyers was "paid in full.")

"It was a running joke," Howard says. "Bartenders would ask me, 'When are we getting paid?' I'd just say, 'Probably never.'" Howard agreed to manage the club for $300 a week until business picked up. But in more than two months, he claims, he collected only about half of what he was owed.

The final straw came at a Krave College Night in December. According to both Howard and the promoter, more than 200 people paid $7 to $10 to attend, and the club and promoter agreed to split the money fifty-fifty. But at the end of the night, the promoter was handed only $348. Howard and the promoter claim that the Kanieskis had someone pick up the cash at the door several times during the evening, then didn't include those pickups when figuring the promoter's cut.
"I'm always loyal to the people I work for," Howard says. "But you can never put me in a position where I have to lie to someone. I won't do that." He quit on January 6.

Sandra Kanieski knows nothing of the College Night incident. She adds that Howard was fired and that his pay had been docked for various infractions, such as eating or drinking on the job. Similar violations resulted in lower payment for other workers too, she says. "All they have is allegations. You've got a lot of people who are alcoholics and a lot of people who are thieves." But for the Kanieskis, the litigation continues: Nine former employees at the Beachcomber have filed suit for $15,000 in back wages, plus $30,000 interest and damages dating to 2004. That case is slated for trial in May. (Plaintiffs and lawyers did not return calls seeking comment.)

Since leaving Krave, Howard has taken a job in telemarketing, though he'd like to return to managing a club someday. In the meantime, he and others are considering a suit of their own against the Kanieskis. "I think they counted on a lot of people not pursuing it," he says. my husband and i worked at the shark club and opened the beachcomber with chris and sandy. we worked at both clubs and averaged about 45 to 50 hours per week each. we never saw a dime. we were promised on and on that we would get a check. we never recieved a thing. we walked out one day and have not heard a word since. reading this was a breathe of fresh air. we would like to be involved in whatever legal pursuit there is against these two and we would like to help get them shut down so they can not do this to any one else. please contact me asap. thank you sean and tina Once a crook, always a crook! They have a new place...The Kent Arena in Streetsboro. How are 2 convicted felons able to open a bar???!!!

Employees & Patrons BEWARE!!! I too am a former employee of these crooks. I was brought into their new place with the with the promise to the chief that the place would be remodeled and a new up scale menu would be created. Needless to say neither are happening, and no pay check as well, I too would like to join in on the legal pursuit. Please e-mail me at (((REDACTED))) i was lucky enough to read this after only one week,58hrs,i confronted sandy tonite and she wont pay me and asked what i was going to do about it.the racket i worked was the riverwalk in troy on 422 east,i am an honest,hardworking man i dont like being screwed. im not seeking legal action i will just wait till winter sets in and throw some rocks at their windows,maybe punch some holes in their boats,trash the outdoor bar they dont get there till after 11am,i get up at 6.they will lose money i promise I must say that I have heard of many instances about these crooks. Maybe someday someone will execute them out of anger. I can't believe how dishonest these s***k people are. Sandy, the mother is absolutely the worst type of person taking advantage of hard working people who simply want to support themselves by working hard and paying their bills. Someday very soon they will get what is coming to them and it won't be very nice.

Submitted: Saturday, June 04, 2011
Posted: Saturday, June 04, 2011
Reported By: AZdrnkslngr Chandler Arizona United States of America

Worked for these guys for a few weeks and never recieved a dime for payment. After months and many police reports, it was determined they issued me a check, and then cashed it themselves. I cant even begin to go into detail on the vast criminal and shady history of this mother and son combo. They have owned/operated in numerous states and buildings in different citys. Guilty of money laundering ( $1,000,000+) , telecommunications fraud, check fraud and more, it blows my mind that these guys are still in operation. I have a list of at least 15 people that this same scenario has happened to. These guys are professional crooks and belong behind bars!

Submitted: Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Last Posting: Monday, February 27, 2012
Reported By: Concerned Citizen Chesterland Ohio U.S.A.
The Honky Tonk Saloon. 8737Mayfield Road (route 322) Chesterland, OH 44026 ph: 440-729-4444
Moccasin Creek @ The HonkyTonk Saloon (Chesterland, OH)
The Honky Tonk Saloon
8737 Mayfield Road, Chesterland, OH
HonkyTonk Saloon - Description: The Hottest Little Honky Tonk North Of Nashville! - Culinary Team: Barbecue! - General Manager: Travis Wise

BEWARE! Make sure you Google all of the key words on this file. You will find rock hard evidence of these people's wrong doing. Over 300 hits on Fraud, scamming, serving tainted & spoiled food, Felons, Deceptive business practices.

You will find articles where these people have bilked money out of everybody! Customers, patrons, employees, vendors, EVERYBODY!

You can find articles from over two decades of ripping people off.

Taking child support money from employees paychecks, writing bad checks, serving spoiled food, watering down drinks & starting bar after bar after bar after bar after bar. Ripping everyone off on the way. Running the bars into the ground, stealing all thy can get and paying nobody!

Google these people under the keywords on the above header. You can read for hours about felony convictions. everything under the sun. Trying to get liquor permits illegally. Convicted of multiple crimes.

It's truly amazing that these people are not back in prison.

Sandy, Sandra Kanieski or Stanaor whatever other names she can make up! She is the true and real problem. It always comes back to her. setting up fake corporations, getting sued, judgments are stacked to the roof on these people.

Everyone should beware of the newest scam operation The Honky Tonk in Chesterland. Give it 3 or 4 or 5 months and she will change the name again to Honky Tink or Tonky Hoonk and then rip everyone off again. Google these people! You will find an unbelievable history of dozens of bars and restaurants and every one of them have dozens of complaints, judgements and criminal activity attached to them.

Wake up Chesterland! The best thing anyone can do is avoid this establishment! If you think you can work there think again!

Make sure you excersise DUE DILIGENCE! Research these people an you will find everything we have said and more!

Stop these scam artists in their tracks!

Rip Off Report is the best venue to get this information out to the public!

We thank God that Rip Off Report is out there!

Here is some info which they are trying to represent themselves:

The Whiskey's on Ice and the Musics on Fire. The Honky Tonk Saloon is a little bit Texas and a whole lotta Nashville. Its NE Ohio's hottest, edgiest new place to party hard with all your rowdy friends. ... See and be seen at The Honky Tonk Saloon.

Live Country Music, Karaoke or Nashville Sound DJ Express (THEO) will keep your feet tapping and your boots dancing all night long.

The Honky Tonk Saloon was built by Country folks, for Country folks. This ain't no high class $4 beer tourist trap, this is a true down home gritty Honky Tonk. Our specialty drinks don't include Chocolate Martinis and bottles of Crystal, but they do feature Moonshine Apple Pie and Trailer Park Tea. So if your looking for a True Country Night Out then head to the Honky Tonk Saloon, where Country Folks come to Party!!

OPENING SOON - THE HONKY TONK SALOON & BBQ ROOM
8737 Mayfield Rd. Chesterland, OH 44026

BEWARE!!!

1. Officials Testify Against Liquor Permit .  news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1350&dat...id...sjid...
You +1'd this publicly. Undo The city contends the restau rant is operated by Ms. daughter, Sandra Stana, and her grandson, Chris Kaniski. City Solicitor George Wilbur and police Chief ...

Youngstown: Sandra Stana, 53, Highland Hts, who pleaded guilty to fraud charges stemming from her work as a financial adviser, sentenced to four years in prison.

Plain Dealer 20 Nov, 1997, pg. 2 sec. B
Subject:
FRAUD --1997
TAX EVASION --1997
STANA, SANDRA
PRISONS --1997
ISSN:
xxxx-xxxx
System ID no:
ACS-4467
Sandra Stana bilked her former in-laws, Mary and Clemens Kanieski, indictment says; also, six investors who met Stana when she operated a financial services business were bilked of $481,342 in retirement funds they had invested with her
Plain Dealer 29 Jan, 1997, pg. 3 sec. B

1. Bars Lounges & Clubs | Ripoff Report | Complaints Reviews Scams ...
You +1'd this publicly. Undo ... Arena, Arena Sports Complex, Kanieski, Sandy Kanieski, Chris Kanieski, Sandra Kanieski, Sandra Stana, Sandy Stana, Montgomery's, Honky Tonk Saloon, ...

1.Thread Saloon | Minecraft War Of The Kingdoms | BoardReader
3 posts - 2 authors - Jun 11, 2011
... Sandy Kanieski, Chris Kanieski, Sandra Kanieski, Sandra Stana, Sandy Stana, Montgomery's, Honky Tonk Saloon, Chesterland Hon Fraud, ...


1. Liquor Permit Denied Over Ownership Issue .
news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1350&dat...id...sjid...
You +1'd this publicly. Undo Evidence shows Sandra Stana and her son, Christopher as shareholders and managers of Surfside Restaurant Waterfront Lounge, 1811 Harbor the order states ...


1.  Ex-restaurant .It .Worker Sentenced For Theft .
news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1350&dat...id...sjid...
You +1'd this publicly. UndoVisiting Wood County Common Pleas Court Judge Charles Kurfess sentenced Sandra Stana to three concurrent 18-month suspended sen tences. She was ..

Chris Kanieski Sandra Stana, Sandra Kanieski, Hunt Club, McNamara's , Riverwalk, Pulsations on the Water, Fagans, CRKCorp1 CRKCorp 2 CRKCorp, Kent Arena and many more RIP OFF - $1000 in wages gone, huge list of victims. Threats, false info, and check fraud! Multiple felonies involved here, huge history as well. Streetsboro, Ohio.

1.  honky tonk saloon | Ripoff Report Directory | Complaints Reviews ...
www.ripoffreport.com/directory/honky-tonk-saloon.aspxCached
You +1'd this publicly. Undo 5 days ago ... The River Walk, River Walk, Kanieski, Sandy Kanieski, Sandra Kan Rip ... Sandy Kanieski, Chris Kanieski, Sandra Kanieski, Sandra Stana, ...

1.  FindACase | Tim Covert & Electolite v. Sandra Kanieski oh.findacase.com/research/wfrmDocViewer.aspx/xq/fac...OH.../qxCached You +1'd this publicly. Undo
Aug 19, 2011 IN THE COURT OF APPEALS ELEVENTH APPELLATE DISTRICT GEAUGA COUNTY, OHIO,August 19, 2011,The opinion of the court was ...

1. DIS - Case Record for 11-0755-EL-CSS  dis.puc.state.oh.us/CaseRecord.aspx?Caseno=11-0755&link=PDCCached
You +1'd this publicly. Undo 20+ items CASE DESCRIPTION: SANDRA KANIESKI / IRON HORSE ...

1. dis.puc.state.oh.us/CaseRecord.aspx?Caseno=11-0755&link=SNCached
You +1'd this publicly. Undo CASE DESCRIPTION: SANDRA KANIESKI / IRON HORSE SALOON VS THE ILLUMINATING COMPANY ... IRON HORSE SALOON/ SANDRA KANIESKI, NONE ...

1.  Chris Kanieski - Pipl Profiles pipl.com/directory/name/Kanieski/Chris You +1'd this publicly. Undo A mother and son own three Flats clubs -- and a rep for stiffing the help. ... practice for Sandra and Chris Kanieski, the mother and son who operate Krave and .

1. Covert v Kanieski - Judicial View https://www.judicialview.com/index.php?m_menu=10&post...Cached
You +1'd this publicly. Undo Aug 19, 2011 Appellant, Sandra Kanieski, appeals from the September 14, 2010 judgment entry of the Chardon Municipal Court, which overruled her ...

1. ZANZIBAR RESTAURANT - WILLOUGHBY www.bizfind.us/36/819310/zanzibar-restaurant/willoughby.aspxCached
You +1'd this publicly. Undo 35652 Admiral Dr 44095-1746 - Willoughby (Lake) Tel. 4409420990. Sales: Unavailable Number of employers: Unavailable Manager: Sandra Kanieski ...


1.   Ripoff Report | Chris Kanieski | Complaint Review: 736902 www.ripoffreport.com/...kanieski/chris-kanieski-sandra-stana-s-9fc93...Cached You +1'd this publicly. Undo Jun 4, 2011 Chris Kanieski Sandra Stana, Sandra Kanieski, Hunt Club, McNamara's , Riverwalk, Pulsations on the Water, Fagans, CRKCorp1 CRKCorp 2 ...
  Show map of 1543 Streetsboro Road, Streetsboro, OH 44241
 
1.                              www.scaminformer.com/byuser/84719/Cached
You +1'd this publicly. Undo
Aug 15, 2011 I started working for Sandra kanieski and her son Chris kanieski a few short weeks ago. They own several bars and night clubs. Im currently ...

 
1. Liquor Agency Denies Permit . news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1350&dat...id...sjid...You +1'd this publicly. Undo
Evidence shows Sandra Stana and her son, Christopher Kanieski, as shareholders and managers of Surfside Restaurant. states. The permit application ...

1.  Carly Snavely - Pipl Profiles pipl.com/directory/name/Snavely/Carly You +1'd this publicly. Undo David Joyce and fellow Prosecutor Carly Snavely believe Sandra Franklin's ... Mrs. Kanieski's retirement account of approximately $67000 is in the process of.
 
29th of Dec, 2011 by Scam Employees Well I would first like to say that I have been in the entertainment business all my life. Never in all my years have I met any "business owners" Like the 2 people listed on this report. I am a hard worker and I know what it takes to run a successful legal business. When I started work for the Kanieski's I was hired at their location in Streetsboro, Ohio. I live fairly close to their business, so the idea of me starting work close to home was perfect considering I was traveling an hour to get to the job I worked prior to me starting work for the Kanieski's. When started work for the Kanieski's I was asked to start at their other location in Burton, Ohio at the "Iron Horse Saloon". The day I started I knew the place was completely beneath my standards. With hope that I would start at the location I originally applied at, I stuck it out for a couple months. The first day I started I could not believe how filthy the place was, from the smell from the food, no hand washing prior to handling food, bugs in the liquor and poor personal hygiene of the owners had me really concerned about the health and safety of the patrons. During my time at the Iron Horse Saloon I observed spoiled food being sold for overpriced amounts, bug spray used around the food, Sandra usually did all the cooking on the grill I've seen her blowing her nose and handling food without washing her hands. The restaurant area was on the outside of the building there was no electricity the place was ran on generators, at night the generators would shut off, the next morning when they reopened at 11am they would turn them back on and the smell from the refrigerator would make anyone sick. One day I went into work, I was off the day before so when I got there the place was a complete wreck. I went into the kitchen area and there was water in the sink with hundreds of dead fleas and dog hair. The day before Sandra brought her dogs into work with her and Christopher bathe and groomed the dogs in the same area where the food is prepped and dishes are washed. When I started at the Iron Horse Saloon there was 6 other people working there. Slowly but surely they were all fired or quit because of nonpayment for their services. I started bringing in my own friends and family members to help out under the conditions they got paid the same day. I can remember receiving phone calls from previous employees and venders requesting payments for services rendered. I was told to take messages for Christopher and Sandra but I never seen them return any calls. After 3 weeks of working there I began questioning Sandra about my pay. I received a cash advance for $300 which "cash advance" was her words but in reality it was a fraction of the money that was already owed to me for hours I had already worked. I was supposed to receive an actual paycheck but due to an agreement between Sandra and myself, she was supposed to pay me in cash every 2 weeks.( BIG MISTAKE )Needless to say me receiving a paycheck every 2 weeks DID NOT HAPPEN! Weeks went past I was still working at the Iron Horse Saloon making anywhere from $2.00 a day in tips to $20.00 a day in tips for 7 to 12 hours of work. Still holding on to starting at the Arena in Streetsboro on a consistent basis I continued to stick it out. Towards the end of the summer the Iron Horses business died down so my hours were cut there and business at the Arena started to pick up. I was promoted, well I guess you can call it promoted to the "manager" at the Arena, which included scheduling employees for open nights,cash handling, cleaning, running the bar pretty much doing everything that Chris and Sandy did not want to do. I came in on days off to clean, I set up appointments to met with entertainers and promoters to host events at the Arena. I put many hours in and bent over backwards for Sandra and Christopher. I always do my job to the fullest also at this time I was owed so much money from them I knew if I walked away that I would never receive a dime.

After working MANY events and putting in long hours. I put together a Pride night on Wednesday nights. Like any weekly event it started off slow but eventually started to pick up. I was working one night and Christopher asked where does everyone in my area goes to hang out because he couldn't understand why business was not picking up on other nights. I told him there is a bar out by me called "The Big Dog Saloon" that is well establish and everyone goes there. He told me to get them shut down. I was at a lost, he told me to find out what their capacity is and continuously call the fire department on them. He said that eventually the city will get tired of coming out and fining her and they would shut her down. I could not believe that someone would be so greedy to try and shut someone else's business down because of greed. A few more weeks go by and I could feel that something was going on behind my back. I would come into work and you could feel the tension. The last day I worked there was on Wednesday November 9th. When I got to work I seen some people there that I had never seen before. I was greeted by a man that asked me who I was I told him my name and said that I was the manager. He introduced himself to me as the "new manager". I was confused about his introduction because I knew nothing about the soon to be new changes. Him and I got to talking and he told me that there were going to be changes to how the Arena being ran and the type of events that were being held there. He said he worked for the company prior to Sandy and Chris taking over ownership. He said the Arena has always catered to a country music listener crowd and that the (((REDACTED FOUL LANGUAGE)))and (((REDACTED FOUL LANGUAGE)))events are coming to an end. He said that Sandra and Christopher hired him to turn the Arena back into a country bar and he was hiring all new staff. Blown away by his comments I was speechless. I continued my night there and went home. I was supposed to work the following Saturday night when I text Christopher asking what time he had me on the scheduled I was told he took me off the schedule. I have contacted Christopher and Sandra on several occasions regarding my pay that is owed to me via phone, text and emails. I even went to the Arena and when I asked to speak to Sandra they had me escorted off the property.
Every day I worked I filled out a time card which in every other business that's the protocol. At the end of the week the time cards were collected by Sandra. She has all of my time cards and records of my employment there. She refuses to pay me the money owed to me for all my hours. She knows I have children and a family to support and continues to keep my money. There are so many scam reports on the internet about these 2 people. Also if you search their names under public records for different cities surround the Cleveland area you will see all of the venders and different people that are suing them for unpaid services. Sandra did 4 years in prison for ripping off more than $600,000 from hard working people in an investment scam. I am sure that she learned how to cover her tracts as far as my situation is concerned while she was serving time for ripping off honest hard working people. Also there while working at the Iron Horse Saloon I had many customers telling me about an incident that occurred there prior to my employment there that involved Christopher and a young woman that worked there. There where rape allegations against Christopher. Right after hearing that there were 2 employees at the Iron Horse that observed Christopher taking pictures of up my shorts while I was letting down mini blinds at the Iron Horse. Also during my employment there I was told by an employee to take pictures of my time cards with my phone so I had record of my hours. I printed off a copies of the pictures I took. One night I left there at 4am and forgot my phone. When I went in my phone to show my lawyer the pictures of my time cards they were mysteriously missing out of my phone. I am sure Christopher erased them because they knew that I would never get paid. I can go on for days about the scandalousness of these 2 people. If you are reading this is either you are about to get scammed or you have been scammed or you are Chris or Sandy reading on of the MANY scam report posted on here. I was very detailed about everything so Chris and Sandy you know who wrote this. I hope you stop ripping people off because sooner or later it's going to catch up to you. They ripped of their family when Sandra's mother pasted away and Sandra also ripped of her mother right before she put her in a nursing home. Sandra has a daughter that has nothing to do with her because of her selfish scandalous ways. One day all of their scams will catch up to them and they will answer for all the families they've taken from. Before you get robbed get out while you can. You will end up like me and everyone else they have robbed blind. Sandra and Chris if you are reading this, my address and phone number remains the same can you please contact me about my pay. PLEASE AND THANK YOU.

Now you the reader have dozens of reasons to be aware of who, what and where the ksanieski's are operating. There are over 500 detailed reports available on the internet alone.

If you or someone you know has had the unfortunate experience of crossing paths with the Kanieksi's take the time to voice your concerns on Ripoffreport. If you have not had the displeasure of being ripped off by the Kanieski's you now have information to prevent them from doing you wrong.

Our heartfelt sorrow goes out to those who have been ripped off by these people.