Outdoor dining a ‘saving grace’ for eateries
But many are still struggling
Outdoor dining has turned out to be one of the few bright spots to emerge from the pandemic and restaurateurs are working with lawmakers to make it a permanent fixture — though they’re still struggling to adjust to a COVID-19 world.
“People have learned to love outdoor dining. I think this is going to be part of us forever,” said Amy Naples, executive director of the Plymouth Chamber of Commerce. “It added so much vibrancy to our downtown.”
The state Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure headed to Plymouth Tuesday to host its first of several roundtable discussions to determine how to improve outdoor dining experiences for restaurant owners, municipalities and tourism industry workers.
“Outdoor dining basically saved most of our restaurants,” said Lea Filson, who heads tourism for Plymouth County, even while other tourism-adjacent industries like hotels and retail suffered.
Deb Tanis, who owns Plymouth’s Cork + Table, called outdoor dining her “saving grace,” allowing her restaurant to operate at almost 100% capacity, with half of diners outside and half spaced out inside. Her restaurant, which serves upscale food, does not translate well to takeout orders, she said.
Restaurants’ outdoor dining needs have clashed with those of local businesses, according to Falmouth Chamber of Commerce President Michael Kasparian. The town didn’t add much square footage for outdoor dining, he said, because he saw “significant pushback” from retailers who wanted streets open.
He advocated for lawmakers at the state level to step in and expedite the approval process.
“You guys can make it happen, and I think communities can work it out on their own,” he added.
Restaurant owners have had it “unbelievably hard” during COVID-19, according to Bob Jarvis, who owns several restaurants on Cape Cod including The Quarterdeck in Falmouth and The Pilot House in Sandwich.
He said he struggled to keep up with changing regulations and emails from Town Hall and the Massachusetts Restaurant Association. When dining restrictions were lifted and diners flocked back to restaurants, his staff struggled to keep up with a still-steady stream of takeout orders, forcing him to shut them down at times.
“It’s been an unbelievably difficult situation where people’s tensions ran very high,” he said, adding that some customers yelled at wait staff. “The stress level, it took its toll on the staff.”
Others, including Patrick Brown who owns Island Cafe and Grill in Hyannis, said the increase in Uber Eats and DoorDash orders despite the availability of outdoor dining was eating away at their bottom line. Brown said half of their orders are now takeout, up from 10% pre-pandemic.
“We do breakfast and lunch so there’s not much you can put on a breakfast price,” he said. “It’s just one of those things we just have to continue to do and just hope it gets better.”