PHOENIX — In response to preventative measures to COVID-19, restaurants across the state are asked – and in some cases, forced – to close their dining rooms, business owners are scrambling to salvage what they can of their establishments and ride out the storm.
“The way the Arizona restaurant industry is looking at this is the CDC has not said stop eating food, so that’s the good news,” said Steve Chucri, president and CEO of the Arizona Restaurant Association.
Restaurants like Phoenix City Grille in central Phoenix are having to change the way they do business considering the fears of the spread of COVID19.
Many restaurants across Arizona have had to lay-off employees in the face of dwindling business, with the hopes of re-hiring them once life returns to normal.
“Those tears, to see that heartache on our employees, which are like our family, it’s just– it’s just so hard to explain.” Chucri said.
“The expenses keep going. We’ve got no break on rent, utilities, or any of the normal expenses that we face,” said Sheldon Knapp, owner of Phoenix City Grille.
To try to boost take-out and delivery sales for restaurants across the state, the Arizona Restaurant Association is working to launch a new website, arizonarestaurantweek.com, to allow restaurants all over Arizona to post their take-out menus.
It'll be a one-stop-shop for those looking for a meal, and, as Chucri hopes – a way to drive revenue to businesses that are fighting to keep their proverbial doors open.
“The ripple-effect of the coronavirus is of a magnitude not many of us can even comprehend,” Chucri noted.
As for Phoenix City Grille, Knapp has a simple message for his customers:
“Give us all the support you can. We are extremely grateful to have the number of people come in here that we do – the loyalty from our clientele – but this is an extraordinary situation and we need you now more than ever.”
It is a sentiment, no doubt shared by all restaurant owners and employees.
