Maybe some restaurants can set up GoFund me accounts for their employees. I would kick in to make sure my favorite places can open up when this is over.
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I understand that this is necessary, and how it will blunt the eventual impact of COVID-19. But the personal toll on the people working in the food and dining industry is going to be enormous. I hope our government recognizes this and improves unemployment benefits, and makes bankruptcy less draconian.
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Wash your darn hands, stay calm, then visit your local restaurants and eat, drink, and be merry.
3
@Ruby What??! I don't think you get it.
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@Ruby Following up on my own comment (I commented on Friday and the NYT posted it today). Things are changing hour by hour ... the best we can do is support restaurants when they reopen and order take away until then. Instead of seeing reports of: “Airlines Get $$$ Bailout”, I want to see “Restaurants Get $$$ Bailouts”. We can replace planes ... we can’t replace a special neighborhood restaurant and all the joy that brings. But still wash those darn hands.
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@Thomas Relax Thomas, I submitted my comment last week on 3/13 and the NYT posted it yesterday due to a delay on their side. Don’t tell me what I get or don’t get.
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If the landlords of restaurant and diner spaces had a brain in their heads (they do, but in neutral because of status quo greed), they would proactively reduce their monthly rent from 50-100 per cent until the crisis over.
This would obviously be in their best interest to avoid vacancies and broken leases, but no, they’re collectively too stupid to do the math and will run to their lawyers to compensate their hollow-heads.
They don’t understand that “Goodwill” is a longstanding valid business concept and that it is ultimately worth a lot of dollars.
No doubt many actual landlords are separated from their lessors by brokers, who are mostly snakes who have discovered one of the slimiest, most lucrative cults of the “real estate industry”.
A safe bet that few of said snakes have been anywhere close to a business school, and have never heard of “Goodwill”, and would only sneer if they had.
No doubt there are some exceptions somewhere. Run a front page article about it when you find even one.
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And what is happening, if anything at all, to TAK Room in Hudson Yards? It was reviewed at the opening by Florence Fabricant, possibly for its lobster thermidor, and given subsequently two stars by another reviewer.
@Tuvw Xyz Can you not get Lobster thermidor in Evanston? You seem quite obsessed with TAK Room's version.
1
While unfortunate, everything changes . The universe is chaos . Maybe this virus shows us that a life of constant consuming is not what the planet needs. You can't have it both ways. Oceans to be fished out and full of plastic by 2050. Well maybe this slows the fishing and plastic use. There is always a silver lining if you look for it.
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Let’s clarify here USHG. They will pay their employees through the pay period, which in our industry is this Sunday. They will cover corona virus medical costs, isn’t this already being covered by the state and city whoever doesn’t have coverage. I’m complete disagree with this move. Let’s close everything then. Mr Meyer when will you believe it’s “safe” to reopen the restaurants. Teflon Don
The strong survive weak will perish its a test of wills and will not.
All these places should close. Lets limit transmission right now. Do the right thing. If your business isnt essential its essential you close and protect people. Urge people to stay home right now. Dont use the subway unless it is urgent. Lets work togeather.
3
Growing numbers of unemployed, declining numbers of restaurants, what's next? Eventually, eat the rich?
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If you really love a restaurant, order in.
And ignore fast food chains. They'll be fine.
3
For those who can, why not switch to take out / delivery only.
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We'd be eating in many of them, especially Le Bernardin (my favorite) if plays weren't closed, and we weren't at risk of being quarantined in the city.
1
I’m one of the employees that work at one of Daniel Bouluds restaurant and this experience is causing so much anxiety and panic to I can probably say everyone that work in the service industry. Even though we get sick pay for 2 weeks because we work in NYC, as tipped workers we only get $10 per hour, that means we get only about $300 after taxes for 40 hr week without tips. That’s barely enough to buy food and other essentials. How are we suppose to pay bills and rent? On top of that those who get insurance through their company LOSES their insurance. WHEN WE NEED IT THE MOST! What do we do for medication that we need that has nothing to do with COVID 19? I have no idea where to call to ask for assistance, the companies literally just cut off the workers rand said good luck, see you after if you’re still alive.
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I was also an employee at Dinex. It is hilarious how these chefs are lauded for their brave decisions when they do nothing for employees they relied upon. Very disappointed.
5
@King Lenwahw There is a prescription discount card called GoodRx - Google it for particulars.
I picked up take-out from our favorite Thai restaurant last night. My plan is to do more of this, in the coming days, with our local small businesses and restaurants. I always tip above what's expected in our area. I'm increasing that now, too.
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Older diners who have the financial means to enjoy so many great but expensive NY restaurants simply cannot take a chance on getting the virus. A 15% mortality rate for the eighty plus crowd is frightening. Dining out is out.
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We have purchased gift cards at our favorite restaurants to cover the meals we would have eaten over the next two months. Once everything is up and running at full capacity (months from now?) we will use those gift cards to return.
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@Susan While a good gesture, and wise from a safety perspective, you have to hope that if there should be mandatory closings, the restaurant from whom you purchased gift cards opens back up.
5
Unless landlords want empty store fronts for years to come - and no place to eat - they should knock their rents down for these (and other, less renowned restaurant) establishments to $1 a month until this crisis passes. Many - not all - landlords could afford to take the hit, and probably get some kind of tax break for it as well. At this point, landlords are not landlords, but partners. Their rent rolls a year from now depend on what they do now.
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@Ellen Freilich Ellen, I am a commercial landlord. I make about 7 percent on the rents that are paid after I pay the mortgages and expenses, including taxes, real estate taxes, and loans we have made to give tenants their tenant improvement allowances, utilities and salaries to keep the properties running. On some newer projects, that return is less than five percent. How are landlords able to absorb all of these rents? That is why there were so many bankruptcies and foreclosures during the Great Recession.
7
Outside of the huge dynasties and PE firms, the low-margin business of owning and managing real estate is how most landlords function. Having landlords “eat” or “forgive” rents will leave the landlords immediately in dire consequences. Landlords would need their own banks to forgive their mortgage payments, and the city of New York to forgive property taxes, and the utility companies to forgive their charges. The banks would then need investors likely all over the world who purchased the debt of these commercial mortgages that were securitized against the mortgage payments that landlords are obligated to pay to live for some time without the cash flows they depends on. Who are those investors buying these CMBS? Likely a police or teachers pension fund, which likely already have underfunded pension obligations. All this to say - if we are going to ask for parties to provide forgiveness or relief, we need to pretty much ask everyone to sacrifice for the greater good.
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@Ellen Freilich
Great idea Ellen. I hope the Mayor and/or Governor read your post.
1
Big banks get bailed out. Small businesses are on their own.
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There will be a lot of businesses in a complete economic reset like this (even if it turns out to be temporary) that are not going to survive without a previously established cash cushion or a financial lifeline from Government and lenders of some sort. For a while people are going back to the pure basics to survive and that unfortunately will likely mean not patronizing businesses or services that in survival mode aren't on the list of must haves, and that will extend into both restaurants and many other businesses. Judy Woodward of PBS on Friday gave a commentary on how we should behave and respond to this crises that our political leadership should have made, and it was of FDR's caliber. The tone was re-assuring and on point about how we collectively should be helping those who were already vulnerable in any way we can and scolding those who were stockpiling very excessive amount of food and goods. I wish every newspaper in the country picked up the piece and printed it or put up a link to the live version.
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@Kevin
Here is the link to Friday's PBS newshour with Judy Woodward's commentary at 53:58
thanks.....
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/march-13-2020-pbs-newshour-full-episode
Social distancing isn't always a wise move. It can be dangerous. Fear is contagious and dangerous.
I am thinking of the staff whom many are in a different league from their patrons. Paycheck to paycheck dependent folks will suffer far worse consequences. If we default into another recession then depression, well....
Those Gatsby era New Years parties weren't a joke. Keep them coming.
5
"“I have no relationship with government at any level, so there is no information,” said one famous owner-chef
of an A-list restaurant.
Well, no, actually do starting with the New York City and State Departments of Health. Begin there understanding what and how to interact with the government to find some help in this.
9
All restaurants, not just those in NYC, operate on very thin margins, and the failure/closure rate for restaurants is high even in good times.
Fear of coronavirus keeps diners home and leads to extreme social distancing (e.g., mandated extra spacing between tables), thus forcing many restaurants, even the top ones, to close for some indefinite period of time.
As reported in the NYT, local, state and federal officials have opined that the coronavirus epidemic in the US is just ramping up, and may last anywhere from 2 to 9 months.
Unfortunately, it seems likely to me that most restaurants will be unable to recover from such a long hiatus, especially since diners will have become accustomed to eating at home, having meals delivered, and avoiding restaurants.
While cooking at home certainly offers many joys and benefits, I will miss both the little neighborhood dining spots and the 5-star restaurants of NYC. Who could have ever have imagined that Le Bernardin would have to close, even if “temporarily; it’s like having to close the Louvre or any of the historic/artistic must-sees of Europe—but, wait, that has been necessary, too.
I am an older gentleman so my days of gastro-tourism have been winding down, but I will certainly miss dining at the fine restaurants in NYC, Paris and other major cities.
27
Daniel has been planning to permanently close way before the pandemic. Daniel Boulud has spoken openly to his staff at his multiple restaurants that he is tired, wants to sell and wants to return to France to be with his family and ailing father. Let’s call it like it is... our government needs to give help and resources to our small restaurants first not these corporate eateries that pretend to be local. We need to examine and greatly consider aid to large corporate entities last. Only these behemoths can seat out months of service and not take a hit. The truth can be only be said for the exclusively few. I smell these “sudden” big-store closing as tax-graft. Time for investigations. Sorry Daniel my brother.
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We love our neighborhood restaurants. Adding shuttered restaurants to already shuttered shops and restaurants resulting from profit-taking by greedy landlords who in recent years have jacked up rents to charge the max they thought that the market could bear...can contribute significantly to lowering morale during a crisis (in contrast to how these places bolstered morale during a huge crisis like 9/11. There are certainly prudent and sensible measures that are crucial to weathering this crisis, but we did not rise up from 9/11 by bolting the doors and cowering inside.
17
This is such a sad situation. New Yorkers have long had a love-love relationship with our restaurants. I for one have so much respect and affection for the people in the industry who do so much to make NYC the food capital of the world. I sincerely hope that the hard working dedicated people in the restaurant business who bring happiness to the lives of New Yorkers come through this situation safely and with their livelihoods intact.
14
@ Shiv New York
"NYC the food capital of the world" -- I do not think that New York City can be called as you called it. NYC is undoubtedly the capital of the national cuisines in the US, but not even the capital of the US national cuisine. And what is the latter: hamburger, pizza, and peanut butter?
2
@Tuvw Xyz You might be surprised that I disagree: NYC is not the capital of the national cuisines in the US. Of some cuisines, perhaps, but other cities with greater concentrations of specific nationalities probably have an edge -- Houston for Vietnamese food, for example, or Minneapolis for Somali.
You won't, however, be surprised that I disagree about what constitutes "US national cuisine." It is everything that anyone has brought here, or found here, and someone else has modified. Korean tacos, tandoori tofu, and, yes, pizza, which did not spring from the head of Uncle Sam. We may not be a melting pot, but we are a pot that can cook innovatively.
3
Ignore this person, as they never have a positive comment to make.
3
Take this story about the restaurant industry and multiply it by all of the other industries potentially in trouble. It’s not looking good to me. Not good at all.
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@C. Neville Agreed. This is just one facet of a very large iceberg representing small businesses that are in trouble.
@C. Neville In the next few weeks there will - sadly - be countless stories of industries affected by this crisis: bookstores, charities, freelancers, theaters, artists, designers, I can't continue this list since it is too sad.
If you go to a restaurant tomorrow, tip a little bit (or a lot) more.
Folks are going to need it.
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I would expect that for every 100 restaurants that close, 50 will never reopen and about 20 will reopen and then close within a few months. Once "social distancing" is learned, it will take a long time to unlearn.
25
This is a gut-punch for all of us who grew up with and soldiered alongside these restaurants in the 80's and 90's. Your influence and integrity still marks my everyday.
17
Here in San Diego there’s this sense of foreboding that a lot of places will not make it - especially the spots that rely on tourist and convention dollars.
2
Gotham Bar and Grill just closed for good. the last day of service is Saturday. Sad times for the NY restaurant industry.
35
Landmark restaurant in NYC. Sorry to see it go...
1
@Ryan The new chef ruined the place well before the virus scare.
2
@Ryan It is sad that Gotham is closing but this would have happened without any health scare. The food under Ms. Blamey as chef was so inconsistent and disappointing that it was no surprise. When you can get a table for four on a Friday night pre-virus, with no reservation, you know the restaurant won’t survive. I couldn’t understand the rave review in The NY Times. I went three times, each time hoping the last time was a bad fluke but they never got it together.
3
To Julia Moskin,
These are tragic times for the hospitality industry, which is why verbiage is very important. You should probably reconsider using the term "indefinitely" to describe the restaurant closures in this article. It is a very finite term and doesn't suggest that they will reopen once this all passes.
4
@Travis NYC I disagree. I believe Ms Moskin used the exact right words to describe the situation: "temporarily."
8
@Sarah If it lasts a considerable time then it won't be temporary. As the writer stated, so many of these places operate hand to mouth (author's phrase). It's going to change the landscape permanently.
The hysteria around the Coronavirus is the death penalty for the gig economy and everyone employed by it.
And far more people (mostly younger, and/or poor or lower middle class) and businesses will get hurt economically and go bankrupt than will ever die from the virus.
35
@Matt Wood NYC
Ask anybody in a country where this has peaked if it is "hysteria".
I'll leave you with this to ponder: https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-recovery-damage-lung-function-gasping-air-hong-kong-doctors-2020-3
But you are correct, this is economic death penalty across the board, not just for the "gig" economy, whatever that is. Regardless, restaurants are not "gig".
3
@Matt Wood NYC True but it's not just the "gig" economy; it's going to affect all ages, nearly all businesses too.
I called Le Bernardin this very afternoon -- Friday the 13th around 3 PM -- to make a dinner reservation for mid-May and was told that they wouldn't take reservations for May until April 1st (their normal policy.) I asked if they were going to remain open, and I was told that the restaurant was not going to close. Obviously things changed.
The moral of this story is that it's clearly not possible to plan ahead for anything at this point.
8
Most restaurants in NYC operate with razor-thin margins and cannot afford offering sick leave AND $15/hr AND health benefits. It is a business where a lot of immigrants work because sweat equity, dedication and hard work are what counts. Add to the mix in dire need of support the catering cooks, mostly part-timers on call. They have zero safety net. I was a chef in NYC for over 18 yrs, catering as a freelancer for half of that. I'm lucky enough I was able to switch to software development but I'm shaken when I think about what happens to thousands of workers in this industry.
61
The virus is showing the underbelly of American society , no healthcare ,no paid leave ,paycheck to paycheck life .The restaurant business is just one of many jobs were people are living on the edge.Time will tell.
100
Maybe this is the wake up call we needed as a country to realize how BAD people have it and understand how vulnerable 1/2 the country is. We can't close NYC schools cause they are babysitters and food pantries for so many children. That's because their parents dont make enough money to afford a normal quality of life; food, clothing and shelter should not come through schools. Somethings gotta change folks. Somethings gotta change.
75
@59 1/2 today , the parents are in jail or up late smoking crack and then sleeping until 4 every day.
1
@robert conger
and only rely on tourism...
I saw this suggested elsewhere: If there's a local restaurant which has been doing well but which decides (responsibly) to close, and you hope they'll reopen, and you can afford it, see if you can buy a gift card from the restaurant online now, which you can use when they re-open.
68
@L.G. If they go bankrupt anyway, you will not get your money back. If you can waste that kind of money, give it directly to those directly treating the healthcare crisis not discretionary service business owners.
8
@Anonie Perhaps I should have been more specific. I'm thinking of the sort of neighborhood place with one or two owners who do the greeting, cooking, and serving, and have been doing well as a sit-down place with a local crowd. If they were doing well, presumably they'd do well again as normalcy returns, but are struggling now. Places that do mainly take-out and delivery may not be having as hard a time; I don't know. But I certainly wasn't suggesting a $20 gift card at Le Bernardin.
21
@L.G. I think that's a great idea and I knew that you didn't mean give it to Burger King.
Sincere sympathies to the owners, chefs, and employees of Gramercy Tavern and Union Square Café from a far-away gourmet of modestly refined tastes. I admit to not being a gastro-tourist, although I consider four cities greatly worth of culinary visits: New York, Paris, Zürich, and Tokyo, each for its own specific reasons.
21