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The sudden closure just before Christmas of a local restaurant, owned by a member of the Hart wrestling family, has left employees missing thousands in wages.

Bret (The Hitman) Hart’s daughter, Alexandra Hart, opened Hart Healthy Food restaurant in East Village in October, but the opening was short-lived. Staff received notice the day before the doors permanently closed on Dec. 20.

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Ben Duong, who worked in the kitchen, said the short notice was a secondary concern for him and his co-workers, none of whom received a paycheque in December.

“This is very stressful. Now I’m behind on some payments, can’t afford groceries, haven’t been able to pay this month’s rent, so I’m really struggling,” said Duong.

Duong said he’s owed about $1,500 in wages. He said that when he first started at the restaurant, things looked to be working smoothly. But it didn’t take long for him to notice some oddities, such as missing shipments from their food suppliers, which resulted in four grocery store trips for the kitchen staff so they had enough food to serve.