Omicron putting pressure on already-strained restaurants
Moran’s Bar and Grille in the Arena District depends on business from Columbus Blue Jackets games. So owner Matt Rootes watched in alarm as two recent contests were canceled when players tested positive for the coronavirus.
“That’s our lifeblood,” he said.
As the omicron variant of the coronavirus rips through Ohio’s population, Rootes is staring at the prospect of more canceled games. And the Columbus restaurant industry largely shares his concern over the latest COVID-19 strain.
The last two years challenged restaurants with stay-at-home orders, restrictions, and coronavirus surges, and omicron has restaurant owners feeling a sense of deja vu.
The danger for the hospitality industry comes on two fronts. News of a more
contagious variant could convince customers to cook at home. And a rise in infections could drive workers to quit for fear of catching the disease.
“People testing positive, and those who are exposed to (an infected person) is shrinking the available workforce when industry is already under pressure,” said Ohio Restaurant Association President and CEO John Barker.
And even if most Ohioans keep dining out, a small number of reluctant patrons has an outsized impact on an industry with razor-thin profit margins, he said.
Ohio set a record for new cases last week as the new infections surpassed 37,000 in a single day. More than 80 Ohioans are now dying of the disease daily, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
“It’s coming at a really bad time,” said Bob Szuter, owner and co-founder of Wolf ’s Ridge Brewing, which has a restaurant and taproom in Downtown Columbus. “Going into an already quiet
time in January, how much worse is it going to be?”
Doctors and researchers believe the omicron variant spreads faster than previous versions of the virus. Initial hospitalization rates and death tolls suggest omicron could be less deadly, but infectious disease specialists note that omicron research is in its infancy.
“The jury is still out on the severity of illness,” said Dr. Mark Herbert, an infectious disease specialist for Mount Carmel Health. “Many people are offering the conjecture that the oomicron illness is less severe, but initial studies in South Africa showed that the rate of hospitalization and death was the same. So it’s hard for me to feel confident that the illness is less severe until we have more data.”
Dr. Joe Gastaldo, an infectious disease specialist for the Ohiohealth hospital system, recommends the public remain vigilant regardless of early death tolls and hospitalization rates.
“We can’t make that blanket statement that it’s less severe for everyone,” he said through a spokesperson. “For someone who was unvaccinated or had an underlying medical condition like advanced COPD, contracting omicron could hospitalize them and lead to a cascade of other issues.”
In spite of omicron’s spread, a small number of restaurant owners say revenue remains flat.
“Right now the numbers have not decreased in terms of who is coming in and out of the restaurant,” said Ron Jordan, who owns Hen Quarter in Dublin’s Bridge Park development.
Customers’ behavior hasn’t changed, likely due to COVID fatigue, he said.
But Jordan added, “We’re definitely worried about it.”
January and February is a difficult time for restaurants in a normal year, Barker said. Bouts of bad weather keep customers home and when families and couples cancel an evening out they don’t reschedule it, he said.
“In the restaurant business, you don’t typically make up those sales,” he said.
And reluctant customers are only half the problem. Staffing problems are as devastating to the restaurant industry as the resurgent virus. Dozens of restaurants around Columbus shuttered during the pandemic, and owners were just as likely to cite staffing problems as they were revenue pitfalls.
For their part, restaurant workers who left the industry cite fear of spreading COVID to vulnerable relatives and friends, a lack of childcare options, low pay, and customers revolting against coronavirus restrictions.
Staffing shortages at the Greater Columbus pizza chain Late Night Slice mean the company sometimes fails to live up to its title.
“We’re known for being open at 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. on the weekends, but we’ve been closing at 2:30 a.m. and midnight on some days if we don’t have the staff to stay open,” Owner Jason Biundo said. An outbreak could mean further cutbacks.
But there is one key difference between omicron and earlier surges, said Michael Levin, a professor of marketing at Otterbein University who follows the hospitality industry.
“This go around there’s not as much federal and state support,” he said.
Pulling back help for small businesses and their workers has consequences which are especially acute for those working on the front lines.
Early in the pandemic, Wolf’s Ridge Brewing, which has a restaurant and taproom in Downtown Columbus, paid workers who had to quarantine after contracting COVID.
“We told our employees that we can’t pay you if you have to quarantine, which is really, really hard, because this is nothing they can control,” Szuter said.
Biundo has no doubt omicron will hurt his bottom line, but he feels the local restaurant chain is better prepared for this surge.
The Late Night Slice management bought 150 COVID tests and pulled the company’s food truck off the road so workers could fill in at the six brick and mortar locations.
“We’re concerned, but fortunately, this isn’t anything terribly new,” Biundo said.
The rise in cases has a handful of restaurateurs eyeing tactics they didn’t consider before.
Upscale restaurants thrive on in-person dining where servers can push lucrative drinks, appetizers, and desserts. But Greg Lehman, founder and CEO of Watershed Distillery near Grandview Heights, said the liquor company’s bar and restaurant is considering a bigger emphasis on carryout as omicron rages across Ohio.
“We’re a little bit late to the game with that but clearly that’s helped a lot of restaurants,” he said. “It allows them to keep the lights on.”
In the meantime, restaurant owners and workers face the same problems confronting the industry since the pandemic began. Rude and angry customers are the most visceral of those problems.
Earlier this week a patron hurled racial and homophobic slurs at an employee of Pat and Gracie’s in Downtown Columbus after he was told to wear a mask, said Rootes, who also owns the Gay Street diner.
The customer left after servers confronted him, but then called Pat and Gracie’s to continue his tirade.
“It’s very stressful for the staff as owners can’t be there 24/7 to protect them,” Rootes said. “They’re getting abused by grown men who should know better.”
Levin counsels patience to Ohioans dining out. Staffing problems mean longer waits and the supply chain problems mean slimmer menus and higher prices, he said.
“People are incredibly short staffed for a variety of reasons and they may not have your favorite dish because the ingredients may not be there,” Levin said. “Please don’t take it out on the staff.” pcooley@dispatch.com @Patrickacooley