Former GM sues for $153,000 in funds lent to Mamma’s owner

Also, a new outdoor clothing consignment shop opens, a young coffee entrepreneur brews a deal with a local cafe, and an update on Village Bakery

Mamma owners Arnaud Drouvillé, left, and Michael Galyen pose inside Mamma at its preview event on June 15, 2023. Drouvillé left the country due to illness. Galyen is listed as the owner of the business, which closed on Father’s Day. (File photo by Wendy Weitzel)

Details continue to unfold relating to the closure of the Davis restaurant Mamma. The most recent lawsuit owner Michael Galyen faces is for breach of contract, after he allegedly received $170,000 from a former general manager and her husband, and paid back only $17,000.

The Italian eatery at 226 F St. closed on June 15, at the end of the graduation/Father’s Day weekend. Its sister restaurant in Napa, NapaSport, shuttered this month as well. The above lawsuit was one of three Galyen faced from former employees. The first two were for wage theft: by an employee of NapaSport in 2022, and by a former Mamma chef in March. Both suits settled. The chef did not disclose the amount but maintains that he has not received any settlement funds. I have not determined whether the Napa employee did.

I wrote June 16 about the restaurant’s sudden closure. On June 19, I told you about legal challenges that its owner faces. I now have a copy of the April 5 lawsuit filed by Davis residents Kris Pytel-Souza and her husband Jeff Souza. Read on for those details.