Victoria Smith, a former restaurant manager, has filed a lawsuit against Whataburger Restaurants LLC, alleging racial discrimination and a hostile work environment. The complaint was lodged in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas on November 25, 2025. Smith accuses her employer of subjecting her to discriminatory practices based on her race, which she claims have significantly impacted her employment conditions.
The narrative unfolds with Smith’s extensive history in the restaurant industry, where she served as a manager at Denny’s for thirteen years before joining Whataburger in 2007. Her tenure at Whataburger was marked by exemplary performance, particularly during inspections by the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF), where her store consistently scored high marks. However, the situation took a turn for the worse when Samuel Ambriz became the Operating Partner at Store #1019 around 2018. Under his leadership, Smith alleges that she faced severe racial discrimination from both Ambriz and other managers like Ana Castro and Shafaq Chowdry.
Smith recounts numerous instances of discrimination and harassment. She describes how Chowdry would frequently use racial slurs against her and how Castro scrutinized black employees more harshly than their non-black counterparts. Smith claims that Ambriz not only ignored these behaviors but also participated in discriminatory scheduling practices that favored Hispanic and non-black employees over black employees like herself.
Despite lodging multiple complaints with higher management and human resources, Smith asserts that no meaningful action was taken to address her grievances. Instead, she contends that retaliation ensued, further exacerbating the hostile work environment. This included being assigned to grueling shifts without adequate staffing or support while enduring ongoing verbal abuse from colleagues.
In seeking redress from the court, Smith is asking for injunctive relief to prevent further discrimination and harassment at Whataburger. She is also pursuing compensatory damages for emotional distress and loss of self-esteem caused by the hostile work environment. Additionally, she seeks reimbursement for legal costs incurred during this litigation process.
Representing Victoria Smith are attorneys A. Sampson Gbenjo and Huey P. Carter Jr., from The Gbenjo Law Group based in Houston, Texas. The case is presided over under Civil Action No. 4:25-cv-5704 in front of Judge [Name not provided].
Source: 425cv05704_Victoria_Smith_v_Whataburger_Restaurants_Complaint_Southern_District_of_Texas.pdf
