The U.S. Department of Labor accuses the owner of Meers Store & Restaurant in Meers of several wage and labor law violations [Photo by THE OKLAHOMAN ARCHIVES]

MEERS — The U.S. Labor Department claims a Wichita Mountains roadside attraction famous for its pie tin-size burgers used unpaid children as young as 10 years old to bus tables, among other wage and labor violations.

In a U.S. District Court complaint filed Wednesday in Oklahoma City, the department said Meers Store & Restaurant owes more than $181,000 to workers for unpaid wages dating back to 2012.

Joe Maranto, who has owned Meers Store & Restaurant since 1983, denied the claims and said the action could force the restaurant into bankruptcy. Maranto's wife, Margaret Maranto, is also named as a defendant in the department's lawsuit as Meer's general manager.

“When we go bankrupt, there's going to be about 20 families including my own who will be hurt by this,” Maranto said. “If I go bankrupt, I'm going to fix it as much as I can so the government doesn't get a damn thing.”