What Happens When A Restaurant Closes For COVID-19 Precautions
Between revenue loss and expenses, a restaurant can take a six figure hit for a single health-related shutdown
I live in a charming and undiscovered part of Brooklyn called Williamsburg, where there are fixed gear bikes and many restaurants, several of which have had to temporarily close due to health concerns. Mediterranean restaurant Pheasant announced three days ago that it was shutting its doors over one of their employees feeling under the weather. Just last week, Lilia, the pasta joint by Missy Robbins that now conducts service in a field of yurts, announced on Instagram that they were closing until the 29th over “COVID-19 Precautions”. Some of the replies, as expected, showed very little regard for the situation and were only concerned with the status of the reservations.
Which got me thinking… what happens at a restaurant when there’s a COVID scare? To get the scoop and the numbers, I turned to Trigg Brown, owner and head chef at Michelin bib gourmand restaurant Win Son, and Win Son Bakery across the street. In the past month, each of Brown’s restaurants have had to temporarily close over safety precautions, which they announced on Instagram in the interest of transparency. Here’s a breakdown:
When the phone call comes in
The notice that someone has had COVID-19 exposure or a positive test result usually comes in the form of a phone call. For Win Son Bakery, it came mid-shift on a Wednesday afternoon. Brown immediately alerted his managers to what was going on and shut off Caviar. The remaining orders were fulfilled, but there was confusion in the kitchen as the jobs tapered off in the middle of service. Eventually, word got around and there was a staff meeting.
Everyone had to get tested, but splitting up and taking the train around town was out of the question—after all, anyone and everyone could’ve been an asymptomatic carrier. So Brown and his business partner Josh Ku spent the afternoon in their cars, ferrying employees across town to various CityMDs and labs—anywhere that still had tests. Once that was done, it was time to start counting up the days to a potential safe reopen.
“From the beginning, the government has provided an inefficient amount of guidance,” says Brown. “It’s so loosey goosey, all the rules. It’s hard to know that you’re doing the right thing.”
The employee reported that he had contact with a family member with COVID-19. But the arcane rules are such that a positive test result with no symptoms—which triggers a 10-day quarantine—is actually preferable to a negative test result, which are unreliable and requires a full 14-day quarantine, according to the CDC.
After everyone received negative test results, Brown and Ku ultimately decided that the restaurant would reopen the full 14 days after the employee’s last shift.
What happens to the employees
The restaurant may be shut down and not making any money, but employees still need income while they’re in quarantine. Any business that decides to continue paying out wages in this manner can recoup the money as a tax credit through the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which guarantees paid sick leave for COVID-19 related reasons. At least, it used to—the obligation for employers to provide the paid leave expired on December 31, 2020, though the tax credits remain.
A business would therefore need to be willing—and able!—to float the money to their employees, certainly not easy at a time when restaurants really aren’t making money. “We’re trying to play it by the book and do good by our people,” says Brown. “We’re lucky because we have the money to front.“
For Win Son, the cost of keeping the salaries going during the shutdown cost north of $25,000.
What happens to the food
In the case of Win Son, Brown learned during morning prep that one of the cooks had been exposed to someone that had tested positive for COVID-19. Luckily, he was able to cancel all deliveries from their suppliers, and all of the food that couldn’t be frozen was rotated over to supply the sister restaurant’s constantly changing dinner menu. Nothing was wasted.
The same couldn’t happen when Win Son Bakery, which focuses more on breakfast and pastries, had to shut down.
“We threw a lot of shit away, probably a couple thousand dollars worth of product,” says Brown. “It sucks to throw shit away, but losing money is the game right now. It’s how much you can control that loss.”
What happens to rent
Any restaurant that has survived in New York City this long into the pandemic has already managed to extract the best possible rent deal from their landlord. Best believe operators are paying even during a COVID-19 scare.
What happens to business
When a restaurant gets hit with a COVID-19 scare, it takes down every employee—by the time a positive test result comes in, one has to account for the several days of intermingling with the rest of the team that came immediately before. Most restaurants are running on a barebones staff to begin with, and there’s no B-team to come in and churn out takeout orders. Business stops completely.
“It hurts, it’s over $50,000,” says Brown of Win Son’s revenue loss during the nine-day shutdown shortly after the new year. “It was gnarly, man.”
Places that have prepaid or ticketed reservations have to reschedule them—or return money that they thought was already in the bag.
Luckily for the Win Son family, both COVID-19 scares were non-symptomatic, and they were able to reopen within a two week period. But add it all up, and the net loss of business and expenses easily hit six figures. Something to think about before complaining about your reservation on Instagram.
The Numbers
With 279 new hospitalizations, 4,621 new cases, and a 8.08% positivity rate across the past seven days, the numbers are as bad as ever. But the positivity rate is trending down, ever so slightly. Might we be seeing the effect of the holiday season start to wear off?
There’s a lot going on in the world, and less so in the world of New York City restaurants. But with Gov. Cuomo slated to make an announcement on Friday on their decision to reopen for indoor dining at 25% capacity, we may see a lot more action soon, both out in the field and in this newsletter. Stay tuned!
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