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Tuesday, Nov 12, 2024
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Pickup’s Potential

Restaurants are surviving the ever-shifting coronavirus dining landscape, says Orange County Restaurant Association founder and President Pamela Waitt, whose organization was formed in 2007 to promote and market the Orange County restaurant industry.

At times it seems like survival of the fittest.

“It’s really challenging, and will be until restaurants can fully open again, but nobody knows when that will be,” said Waitt, who noted that the coronavirus situation has caused a domino effect for restaurants.

“It’s the entire chain of command—the purveyors, the suppliers. Restaurants have so many different vendors, and they are all suffering. Restaurants are the cornerstone of the economy, and it’s tough because restaurants already had a low profit margin. They are not sitting on stockpiles of cash. Many are operating with less staff, which they can because they are serving less people. It’s a horrible Catch-22.”

Waitt said restaurants may be operating at half capacity, but their bills, including rent, have not been reduced. This dilemma can lead restaurants to consider shutting their doors, but Waitt said the actual restaurant closures are far less than the dire number predicted earlier this year. Of course, it also depends on how long the pandemic lasts.

“Some restaurants have been able to pivot really well. What’s been helpful in some cases is offering cocktails to go, where people can pick up a whole meal and cocktails to go with it,” Waitt said.

And pickup is key, she added.

Some food delivery services take as much as 35% from the restaurant’s total ticket. That’s why she created the Time for Takeout website, which lists nearly 200 restaurants in Orange County that offer takeout menus along with discounts for picking up the food yourself. Visit timefortakeout.com.

“The early days of the quarantine gave restaurants time to create new systems,” Waitt explained. “Now you can pick up larger kits from restaurantts. Taco kits are huge, they heat up so well, they’re not assembled so they don’t get soggy, and they are usually so big that you get more meals out of it.”

Waitt is also coordinating a Fall Restaurant Week Sept. 13-19 to help promote the industry during a time when it needs assistance. There will be prix fixe menus available for dine in or takeout.

Read more about Restaurant Week in September’s Executive Dining column.

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