Operations
Are mask, vaccination rules too harsh on restaurants?
Restaurant operators are starting to feel a sense of deja vu as cities around the country re-instate mask mandates in an effort to protect consumers from the COVID-19 Delta variant. In some areas, vaccination requirements are also in the works. What's that mean for restaurants that are already struggling?
August 20, 2021 by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com
Restaurant operators are starting to feel a sense of deja vu as U.S. cities re-instate mask mandates in an effort to protect consumers from the COVID-19 Delta variant. In some areas, vaccination requirements are also in the works.
"In our case, if we look at sales, it has definitely been a negative," Art Depole, franchise owner of a Mooyah Burgers, Fries & Shakes in New York's Time Square, told FastCasual. The city is now requiring consumers to show an Excelsior pass — a CDC paper card or other official documentation — as well as personal identification to enter indoor entertainment venues, including restaurants, concert halls, museums, fitness gyms, movie and stage theaters.
"We only have a small amount of data to look at, we have already seen about a 40% decline in sales week over week," Depole said. "Lunch traffic is especially down as we are not seeing nearly as many dine-in guests or office workers in general in the city. We have also seen a considerable decline in tourist traffic and that was reflected last weekend, being one of our slowest weekends since March."
Many cities including New York, San Francisco, Kansas City and Chicago have also returned to mask mandates for people — despite vaccination status — visiting restaurants and other public spaces. Over 70% of Chicago adults, for example, have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Chicago Department of Public Health.
"Defeating the delta variant is the best way to support cultural institutions because it brings us all back," New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said during a Monday news conference. "We believe, if we take these aggressive measures, this is going to encourage a lot of people — audience members and staff alike — to get vaccinated."
According to a Chicago Department of Public Health new release, and similar to the area's previous mandate that ended in May 2021, masks may be removed at restaurants, bars and other eating/drinking establishments by patrons when they are actively eating and drinking. Employees must also wear a mask in public areas but may remove them in areas where they can successfully maintain a 6-foot distance from one another.
Based on Chicago's population, the city is in the CDC's "high" category of local transmission when there are more than 400 new COVID-19 cases diagnosed per day. The daily average case rate rose to 462 on Wednesday.
"As we were becoming aware that Delta was becoming something serious… we were quick to mask two weeks before the city even required to mask," Jonathan Goldsmith, owner of Spacca Napoli in a Chicago suburb, said in an email. "I've been very concerned passing it from hosting from one person to another and people taking it home to their children. I've been working hard to get people to understand the necessity for the masks. … Pushback has been horrific and challenging.
Spacca Napoli is not yet requiring customers to wear masks when staff approach the table "and hopefully we don't get back to that point," Goldsmith added.
Labor and enforcement issues
For Depole, the rules are more than just a distraction, considering the restaurant industry is already facing a serious labor shortage.
"Currently, we have about two-thirds of our staff vaccinated, and those who are not vaccinated are saying they will most likely leave if they are forced to vaccinate to continue their employment," he said. "We have a number of our employees who came to us because their former employer was requiring vaccinations."
Depole is also unsure how to enforce the rule and doesn't think it's fair that New York retailers aren't held to the same standards.
"We haven't received much guidance from the city on this, but at this point, it is my understanding that we are expected to check vaccine status at the door and turn away unvaccinated customers who want to dine in," he said. "The issue for us is that to properly enforce the mandate, we will need to hire someone to stand at the door to check our guests' vaccine status. On a typical Friday, we are open from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m., which means that we will have to pay $15 per hour for someone to stand at the door for 16 hours, which will run us an extra $6000-$7000 per month in payroll.
"Right now, that is an expense we just can't absorb as we are already struggling to keep our heads above water."
Although Depole wants to prioritize the health and safety of guests, he also thinks people need to understand the strain facing the industry.
"Restaurants are in a tough spot being forced to police the issue for the city, and it seems unfair that certain industries are being singled out," he said. "For example, 5,000 people can co-mingle in large retailers down the street from us with no masks and no questions asked about vaccines, and likely these retailers aren't cleaning and sanitizing to the standards we hold to."
Depole's location, however, disinfects and sanitizes every 15 minutes with a peroxide-based cleaner that kills COVID-19.
"Likely, these retailers aren't cleaning and sanitizing to the standards we hold to," he said. "We take great pride in the fact that our restaurant has had zero cases of COVID among guests and staff.
"It's difficult for us to turn away good customers who are not vaccinated while other businesses face no such requirements."
Mandy Wolf Detwiler contributed to this story.
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