UPDATE @ 4:58 p.m.:
The state has shut down a downtown Dayton restaurant for failing to file or pay sales taxes.
De'Lish Cafe, located at 139 N. Main St. across from the Victoria Theatre, has had its vendor's license suspended by the Ohio Department of Taxation for tax reasons. De’Lish offers fine dining, drinks and regularly hosts shows and special events, such as the Mayweather/McGreger fight.
De'Lish will not be allowed to reopen until it pays all of the sales taxes it owes or files all of the necessary returns, officials said. The state declined to say if De'Lish owed money and how much it owed.
Businesses that do not pay sales taxes or fail to file sales tax returns three times over a 12-month period are at risk of having their vendor’s licenses suspended, said Gary Gudmundson, a spokesman with the tax department.
Across the state, about 40 to 50 businesses each month have their vendor's licenses suspended, Gudmundson said.
Generally, most vendors have to file and pay sales taxes each month.
De’Lish is enrolled in the Ohio Habitual Offenders Program, which involves businesses with a history of late sales tax payments, Gudmundson said.
De'Lish was issued a 10-day notice of suspension in September, and investigators posted the notice of suspension on Monday.
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"Most businesses, if they want to stay in business, are motivated to pay what they owe as promptly as they can, otherwise they can't make money," Gudmundson said.
De'Lish owner Jasmine Brown did not immediately return a request for comment Monday.
On her Facebook page, Brown wrote: “No I am not closing. I had a payment for my sales tax that didn’t go through for a prior month that jeopardized my vendors license.”
Brown said the payment was being handled and she predicted being open again Wednesday.
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This month, Morgan Services Inc. filed a lawsuit against De’Lish allegedly for breach of contract and nonpayment. The promotional supplies company is seeking about $17,185 in damages and compensation from the restaurant.
INITIAL REPORT:
De’Lish Cafe on North Main Street in Dayton was closed Monday afternoon and a sign from the Ohio Department of Taxation was placed on the door.
The sign read that De’Lish Cafe’s vendor’s license “is under suspension” and “is prohibited from making retail sales at 139 N. Main St.”
The public notice sign did not go into further detail.
We’re working to learn more.
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