We’re open

Raegan Steinberg, BA 08, of brunch spot Arthur’s Nosh Bar in Saint-Henri, was equally concerned for her staff.

“Restaurants are the only places where people actually remove their masks,” she points out. Many clients were patient and understanding, but from others, “there was a serious lack of respect.”

Waits for tables were long and people got frustrated and were sometimes rude. Some wouldn’t put on masks to go to the bathroom; others would just cover their mouths by pulling up their shirts.

Steinberg had been scheduled to open a fine-dining restaurant the week after the pandemic hit. Ineligible for government help, her business partner Shah Kashizadeh thought to remake the space into a fried-chicken restaurant and dubbed it Bucky Rooster’s. It’s proven popular.

Steinberg feels fortunate to still be in business and to be able to spend time with her mother. She’d previously lost her father to cancer and has learned to never take health for granted. “Just to get this time as a family has been special because no one’s been sick. I feel really lucky in that sense.”

Over in the Mile-Ex neighbourhood, Dinette Triple Crown has long provided picnic hampers laden with Southern United States fare for customers to enjoy in a park across the street. Though that may seem fine for low-contact business in mild weather, chef and owner Colin Perry, BA 03, a native of Kentucky, decided it was too much of a risk.

With the advent of COVID-19, Perry closed his restaurant, settled accounts and helped staff navigate government assistance. He doesn’t think he’ll open the dining room until everyone’s vaccinated.

“I wouldn’t want a decision I made to result in one of my employees getting sick,” he says. Perry would have liked better lockdown protocols and more creative alternatives for out-of-work restaurant workers. Perhaps programs could have been put in place to feed those disadvantaged by the pandemic, he says. “Takeout is a luxury, food is a necessity.”

Perry has heard some suggest that restaurants don’t deserve to be saved. But restaurants are a huge part of the tourism economy, he points out. “We all work hard, pay our fair share of taxes and bring in enormous tax revenue. Then we’re told it’s a bad business model and we should figure it out on our own. It’s crazy.” He wishes restaurateurs would band together more.

“People often refer to ‘the restaurant industry,’ but that would imply we all attend meetings and make plans collectively, and that’s not the case.”

‘Pivot by necessity’

Jon Cercone, BA 10, manager and partner of Tavern on the Square in Westmount, says he used to see up to 250 customers a day. “The media emphasizes how people are pulling together and pivoting,” he says, but adds that this narrative downplays the toll of the pandemic. 

Cercone can’t hire back as many employees as smaller places can, and had to personally start a wine distribution business to make ends meet for his young family. “This hasn’t been an opportunity to pivot, this has been pivot by necessity.”

Cercone thinks restaurants are unfairly subject to overblown bureaucracy. 

During the pandemic, Tavern on the Square endured two health inspections, a liquor inspection and a federal inspection to see if the restaurant was paying for the music he’s allegedly streaming to customers that obviously aren’t there. His hope going forward is for a clear plan from government. 

“If you tell me I can open my restaurant in three days, I can’t do it. I have to rehire people, buy food, reboot my reservation system, a million things! I’m having a panic attack just thinking about it.” 

With summer in full swing and many still not fully vaccinated for COVID-19, Steinberg has other concerns. 

“I’m worried. I think it’s going to be wild. Everyone will be travelling and eating out. I think people are going to be very excited about their freedom after the tough winter we had.” 

Trinh, too, wonders about the future. The office workers Monopole depended on are all at home. A big company located across the street recently decided not to renew its lease. She predicts that many customers will still prefer takeout after the pandemic subsides. 

“A lot of people are happy to save those few extra dollars. I don’t think that’s going to change for a while.”

Perry says Triple Crown is only getting through these tight times because he watches every dime. He assumes other restaurants are slowly slipping into debt. 

“They may outlast the pandemic, but they may not last much longer and it will be because of the crisis,” he says. “It’s our duty to band together and keep everybody safe until this is over. And then we can get back to business.”