A job at one of New York’s most exclusive restaurants can look effortless from the outside. Inside, the picture can be very different. A former server and bartender at Ralph Lauren’s Polo Bar has filed a federal lawsuit describing a workplace where he says harassment, sexual assault, and retaliation were allowed to flourish, and where speaking up cost him his job. The case, Nobiletti v. Polo Bar Ralph Lauren, is pending in the Southern District of New York.

According to the complaint and contemporaneous reporting, the employee, Frank Nobiletti, worked at The Polo Bar for roughly seven years. He alleges that after a manager outed him as bisexual, he became a target for harassment and was later sexually assaulted by two managers. The suit also describes a broader culture of misconduct, including tolerance of on-shift drug and alcohol use and a hostile environment for women. It claims that complaints to HR went nowhere.

The restaurant denies these allegations. Management has said Nobiletti was terminated for misconduct, specifically drinking on the job, and that an internal investigation did not corroborate his claims. The lawsuit asserts that this was a pretext and that the firing in February 2024 was retaliation for reporting harassment and discrimination. The case remains active, and no court has made findings on the merits.

However the litigation ends, the story resonates because it reflects what many employees experience when the setting is polished and the stakes feel high. New York City law protects employees from discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation, and it prohibits employers from retaliating when workers report what they’re going through or participate in an investigation. A workplace does not get a pass because the crowd is famous or the brand is powerful. The rules apply in dining rooms with velvet ropes just as they do everywhere else.

If you are dealing with something similar, like being outed against your will, targeted with sexual comments or contact, or punished for reporting it. In that case, you do not have to navigate it alone. At Risman & Risman, P.C., we represent employees across New York City and New York State in harassment and retaliation matters. We listen, we investigate, and we hold employers to the standards the law requires.