Black Estate fights to survive
Two top winery restaurants have already fallen victim to the coronavirus pandemic, but Waipara’s Black Estate is hoping that with some creativity, and loyal customers, it can buck the trend. Emily Brooke reports.
Penelope Naish has a number in mind. She knows exactly how much the two-hat restaurant at her Waipara vineyard, Black Estate, needs to make in the next three months if it is to survive. The notoriously fickle hospitality industry is facing an uphill battle after seven weeks of enforced closure, and for those like Black Estate which rely on tourists and day travellers – Waipara is an hour’s drive from central Christchurch – it’s an even steeper slope.
The coronavirus pandemic has already claimed two top New Zealand winery restaurants: Elephant Hill in Hawke’s Bay, and Black Estate’s neighbour Pegasus Bay, which announced last week it would not reopen.
Black Estate did think about closing, Naish said. ‘‘We thought, is it worth it? I even got to that point [of wondering], are there going to be any restaurants able to open, financially.’’
While the decision was ‘‘probably emotionally led’’, the doors will open on Friday under level 2 conditions. ‘‘We’re going to make a go of it, and spirits are high just knowing we can do what we do again.’’
But even getting to this point hasn’t been easy. Naish and her husband and co-owner, Nicholas Brown, had been using reserves to keep up with the restaurant’s overheads, but even with the Government’s wage subsidy plan and the fortuitous resignation of a fulltime staff member just before lockdown, they’ve still had to make 1.5 positions redundant.
The remaining staff have been working in the vineyard, boxing up online orders – a job that used to be outsourced – and the whole restaurant team, both front and back of house, will work together to prep in the kitchen on Thursdays before it opens from Friday to Monday, 10am to 5pm.
‘‘The last couple of weeks they’ve just been so amazing,’’ Naish said. ‘‘Everyone’s pitching in.’’
To comply with the ‘‘three Ss’’ rules under level 2 – diners must be seated, separated by 2 metres, and have a single server – Black Estate has made some significant changes.
Penelope Naish, above, with husband and co-owner, Nicholas Brown be topped up,’’ said Naish. ‘‘We have great customers who will be appreciative, so it doesn’t concern us too much.’’
She was hopeful the customers would be there. May was ‘‘probably our quietest month’’, Naish said, and diners came predominantly from Christchurch. As the winter went on, in a normal year Black Estate would expect to see Australian tourists, but also a lot of Kiwis who were in the region to ski and snowboard.
‘‘We’re basically relying on local support,’’ she said, although after such a long period of limited activity and movement, she thought Kiwis would be keen to get out and about.
There may be some new markets opening up, too. ‘‘We hope people working from home can come out on week days more than they used to.’’
In fact, Naish’s bigger concern was around the availability of the organic local produce the restaurant insists on using, as its suppliers, once almost exclusively wholesale, had been discovered by locals during lockdown and were doing an unprecedented amount of home delivery business.
‘‘My chef is checking all of that, but we are aware they are a whole lot busier now and vege supplies are definitely limited.’’
Naish was expecting to do about half the restaurant’s typical turnover under level 2, ‘‘but that’s a crystal ball thing’’.
Nonetheless, she was confident the restaurant was giving it its best shot.
‘‘I feel like we’ve got some really good options to be able to open,’’ Naish said. ‘‘We will do our absolute best to still be here in a year and going great guns.’’
‘‘We’re going to make a go of it, and spirits are high just knowing we can do what we do again.’’