Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
The Patriots earned the right to celebrate after punching their ticket to Super Bowl LX with a win over the Broncos in the AFC Championship. However, the owner of a restaurant in Boston that hosted them in the wake of that victory claims players failed to pay their bill while causing a scene that led to its liquor license being put into jeopardy.
Bars and restaurants in Boston have had plenty of chances to host sports teams looking for an excuse to celebrate over the past 25 years or so, as the “Big 4” professional franchises that call the area have collectively won 13 championships since the start of the millennium.
None of them has contributed more to that particular cause than the Patriots (who technically played 22 miles south of Boston). They helped usher in that era with a win in Super Bowl XXXVI en route to securing the Lombardi Trophy six times during the dynasty that unfolded while Tom Brady and Bill Belichick were doing their thing in New England.
Foxborough is not exactly a hotspot when it comes to nightlife, and most members of the Patriots will head to Boston if they’re looking to hit the town. That includes some who descended upon a restaurant in downtown after clinching a spot in the Super Bowl, but it doesn’t sound like they’ll be invited back anytime soon based on what unfolded.
A restaurant in Boston blamed Patriots players for holding an after-hours party that landed it in trouble with the law
You don’t need to be a veteran of the hospitality industry to understand why many bars and restaurants are willing to bend over backwards to accommodate professional athletes who are looking for a place to celebrate after a big win.
Those players typically won’t think twice about racking up a jaw-dropping tab, and if you’re able to leave a good impression, there’s a chance you’ll be able to land some returning customers with deep pockets and a network you have the potential to leverage for your own benefit.
Estella, which describes itself as a “Caribbean American modern fusion restaurant” located near the south end of Boston Common, welcomed an unspecified number of Patriots players who headed there a day after they defeated the Broncos in the AFC Championship to earn the right to face off against the Seahawks in the Super Bowl.
According to NBC Boston, police received a noise complaint before arriving at the restaurant around 2:20 A.M. on Tuesday, January 27th. They were greeted by approximately 30 people at a gathering where they detected the odor of marijuana, spotted “no less than six large hookahs,” and encountered “several women who were nude or wearing bikinis” in a room where the floor was covered in $1 bills.
The restaurant was cited for operating after legal hours (bars in Boston must close by 2 A.M.) in addition to allowing indoor smoking and “unauthorized entertainment.”
According to WHDH, its owner, Helder Brandao, initially accepted responsibility but has since decided to place the bulk of the blame on the Patriots players he asserted he was powerless to control, telling the outlet, “There’s a sense of entitlement that these players think they can do whatever they want.”
He claimed the players, whom he declined to name, brought in their own bottles of Don Julio 1942 on top of the tobacco, hookah, and, um, entertainment that led to his liquor license ending up at the center of a review, adding:
“They left without paying their tabs. That’s the least of our concern. There is discussion in texts I asked for everyone who was there. It’s kind of a sticky situation. It’s a lose-lose, I’ve considered a lawsuit.”
The Boston Licensing Board can modify, suspend, or outright revoke Estella’s permit based on the violations at the center of the summons, and it will tentatively announce its decision at a hearing on Thursday.