It’s still summer in Southie
Sullivan’s Castle Island to stay open through December
Hot dog! For the first time in its storied 70-year history, Sullivan’s Castle Island food stand is staying open through through New Year’s Eve.
It’s a rare good-news restaurant story and a move to guard employees from pandemic-related unemployment woes.
“With so many layoffs and so many things going on, we wanted to keep people on as long as possible. Having been graced with some business, we wanted to give back to them,” said Director of Operations at Sullivan’s, Kizito Paganini.
Typically, Sullivan’s is a classic seasonal business: the hot dog and burger stand opens in spring and shuts down around Thanksgiving. Its opening day draws Bay Staters from all over to Castle Island, where they’ve often found themselves in sleet or snow, waiting for a Lime Rickey.
But as the pandemic began to crush the local restaurant industry, Sully’s — as locals know it — only had to make slight tweaks to the business to reopen. The stand already relied heavily on take-out orders and had an abundance of outdoor seating. Customers were used to the notion that they might get their hot dog and have to walk a bit to find benches near the water where they could eat.
“We don’t really have tables inside, so it was much easier to position. It’s really a functioning model during this pandemic,” Paganini told the Herald.
Sullivan’s invested in standard restaurant protective measures, including masks and other PPE for employees, social distance markers and reminders, and plexiglass at their counter. But otherwise, the business remained much the same.
“We wanted to bring some normalcy into what is kind of an upside-down world,” Paganini said.
And the longer season is delighting customers.
“I’m thrilled that I’m able to come here in December,” said Dorchester resident Craig Galvin, who has frequented Sullivan’s for 49 years.
“Usually, when it closes up, it’s the most sad time of the year, so I’m very excited to hear it,” said Rocco Pandiscio. His friend from UMass Boston alerted him to the extended season,
“When he told me they were still open? I was like, yeah, we gotta go.”
Paganini said the stand hasn’t altered its prices, but they did add online ordering for customers who don’t feel comfortable stepping up to the counter. Once a diner places an order, he or she can wait outside until an employee hand-delivers it to them.
Sullivan’s will offer halfoff hot dogs through the end of the year, and then will close until Feb. 27. Until then, locals are taking advantage of the extra access.
“It’s our job as loyal customers to come here as much as we can to keep them in business. Because it ain’t easy for anybody, but we’re the most loyal that it comes around here, especially for Sully’s,” Pandiscio said.