Coronavirus pandemic walloped restaurant industry
Jim Colonna, the head chef at Union Grill in Washington, cooks up a dish in the kitchen. A year after the coronavirus pandemic began, many in the restaurant industry are hoping the economy is heating up as vaccines are rolled out and COVID-19 cases decrease.
Ashley McCoy, the director of training for Bubba’s Burghers, pour a beer from a tap at The Washington Brewing Co. in Washington.
The owners of Ozy’s Bar & Grill near Clarksville remodeled their entire restaurant and hired two new waitresses for the expected uptick in customers as they planned to open an expanded dining room last April.
But just weeks before they could open it, restaurants across the region were forced to shut down in mid-March as the coronavirus pandemic crept into Western Pennsylvania.
Soon, those two new employees were let go and other changes were made as the restaurant went straight to takeout until it was permitted to reopen for indoor dining in early June.
“It’s been pretty stressful,” said Kristen Ozohonish, who has owned Ozy’s with her husband, Michael, for 14 years. “I’ve been a lot busier this year working. When we were just strictly takeout, we didn’t have employees, so we did a lot of it.”
Over the summer and fall, new COVID-19 safety protocols were introduced for indoor dining that limited capacity, restricted alcohol consumption without a food order and required masks to be worn at all times by servers and by customers when they left their tables.
“The girls are not really scared, but they don’t want to get sick and they feel like they’re taking a risk. But we haven’t had any cases from someone in the restaurant,” Ozohonish said. “It’s been hard on them, but we’ve actually been pretty lucky. We’ve still had a lot of business.”
They’ve been helped by loyal customers who have returned for takeout meals during the initial shutdown and a subsequent closure over the holidays in late December.
“I don’t think their tips have been affected. People have been pretty generous, especially with takeout. When we were strictly takeout, people were very generous because they knew,” Ozohonish said.
“We’ve had a lot of support from the community,” she added.
That has been the case for many restaurants that have struggled through the pandemic over the past year. But it’s still been tough with smaller staffs working shorter hours for fewer tips compared to when bars and restaurants were packed with customers enjoying a night out.
The bond between restaurant staffs has tightened as they’ve worked to help each other out in a pinch or sacrificed hours for a fellow employee.
“It’s been tough. It’s really humbled a lot of us,” said Ashley McCoy, the director of training for Bubba’s Burghers, which operates restaurants in Washington, Southpointe and The Highlands near Wheeling, W.Va. “We’ve all had to come together and sacrifice for each other.”
McCoy said the pandemic has caused “good stressors (to) turn into bad stressors,” meaning previously hectic nights taking big food and drink orders have turned into constant cleaning, temperature checks and monitoring updated CDC guidelines and school closures that impact workers with children. That’s why she said the staff is taking the safety measures so seriously.
“I put my heart and passion into it,” McCoy said last month while working at the Bubba’s location that serves food at The Washington Brewing Co.
But they also have dealt with people who are against following the rules and have argued with or even cursed at employees asking them to wear masks.
“Why are you following the rules?” some customers will ask her.
“Because we have to,” she usually responds.
They’ve been so careful that employees are not allowed to touch their cellphones during their shifts to make sure the coronavirus doesn’t spread on those surfaces.
“We haven’t had any outbreaks,” she said. “We want people to come in and know we’re clean. We care about them.”
While some people have been angry over the protocols, others have left nice reviews on social media or restaurant websites letting other customers know the restaurant is clean and safe. McCoy is encouraging their customers who have been happy with the service to let others know that they can visit and feel safe.
“When you do visit a place taking those steps, let people know they’re keeping it safe,” she said.
While the first shutdown from mid-March through early June was widely accepted and followed by many restaurants in Pennsylvania, the subsequent three-week shutdown in December caused many places to rebel.
One businessman who led the charge in Western Pennsylvania was Rod Ambrogi, owner of Al’s Café in Bethel Park. He organized two rallies last year protesting Gov. Tom Wolf’s restrictions and his restaurant remained open for most of December despite the Allegheny County Health Department ordering it to close.
“We stayed open and we defied the order. We just couldn’t do it (and) the employees couldn’t do it. They had bills to pay,” Ambrogi said. “It’s the principle, though. Why close us when every other retail industry was open?”
He said the county health department fined him $2,800 – a punishment he’s fighting in court – but that was a drop in the bucket compared to the revenue bonanza he made while remaining open during the shutdown before closing for the final five days of it to give his employees time off. If any longtime customers were upset with his stance, many new ones filled the void by dining at his restaurant to show their support, he said.
But Ambrogi admitted the pandemic has been difficult for his restaurant and many others trying to stay afloat.
“In our industry, it’s been hell the past year,” he said. “Everybody’s been hurting in this business.”
That’s especially true for new restaurants, such as Early Bird Diner in Donora, which opened in June 2019 and was still growing its business with a new bakery just before the pandemic struck.
“We are pretty much a family and friends business,” said Jim McDonough, who owns the diner with his wife, Angela. “It affected us greatly.”
The first shutdown was difficult, although people still supported them through takeout orders while also dropping off gifts for them and their staff. The relatively quiet summer with few COVID-19 cases lulled the Mon Valley into a sense of complacency, he said, until the coronavirus hit hard in late fall.
“It’s getting better, but there are still people who are fearful and want to be safe and cautious,” he said. “But all and all, it’s getting better.”
McDonough, who is also the mayor of Donora, said the pandemic has affected everyone in some way.
“The simple fact of the matter is everybody has struggled through this,” he said. “I can talk to you about our financial woes through this … but at the end of the day, it’s been such a huge impact all the way around, it’s hard to wrap your head around what this has done.”
Customers are starting to return again, but the diner is limiting meal options to just breakfast and lunch in case another spike in cases happens.
“How do you plan for anything and try to get things going again if you don’t know what tomorrow brings?” McDonough said.
That’s also made it challenging to find enough staff to work when there’s an influx of business.
Jim Colonna, the head chef at Union Grill in Washington, said they’re trying to give full-time hours to their “core people” while also struggling to find new employees who are ready to work.
“It’s tough to give people hours when we’re bare minimum,” he said.
The loss of the bar seating and no big parties in their backroom on Fridays and Saturdays have affected the bottom line. But there are some nights when they’ve been overwhelmingly busy even at half-capacity since more people are ordering takeout than ever before. When that happens, Colonna has to stop takeout orders to focus on indoor dining.
“The customers have been fantastic keeping us alive,” he said. “You get to know them. Our loyal customers are staying loyal.”
A year after the coronavirus pandemic began, many in the restaurant industry are hoping the economy is heating up as vaccines are rolled out and COVID-19 cases decrease. Colonna is looking forward to a time again when people are huddled closely together inside the Union Grill enjoying a meal or waiting for a table.
“It’s still too early to say because you don’t know what’s going to happen (but) I am optimistic. Heck, yeah,” Colonna said. “There’s nothing to do except go out to eat.”