Restaurants' Winter Of Discontent
Things you can do even from afar to help your favorite places
Welcome to the CulinaryWoman Newsletter, under two comforters edition. I came down with Influenza A about 10 days ago, despite having had a flu shot and avoiding crowded places. I’m feeling somewhat better, but I’ve definitely kept tissue companies in business. My illness forced me to abandon Veg-January, but not without learning some lessons, which I’ll talk about tomorrow in Red Beans & Advice for paid subscribers. If you’d like to become one and support my work, please upgrade here.
A Once In A Lifetime Storm
If there’s any silver lining, last week was an opportune time to be sick. Michigan was hit by a deep freeze, and I found out what happens when really cold weather hits: birds feed like crazy.
While I was under the covers, friends in New Orleans sent me video and photos of their extremely rare snowstorm. It was stunning to see my second city buried under 10 inches.
January is always a difficult month for the restaurant industry, and this year’s weather has made things even more challenging. I know some people are running out of sympathy for restaurants. Prices have gone up and service doesn’t seem the same as it was before COVID. I don’t eat out anywhere near as much as I once did.
That said, restaurants are an important part of our lives. I have some ideas in case you’d like to lend your favorite place a hand.
Buy gift cards
During the pandemic, a lot of us purchased gift cards at our favorite spots. The idea back then was to give them some cash flow to stay afloat so they’d be there when the emergency was over.
Right now would be a good time to revive that practice. In New Orleans, many restaurants and bakeries had to close for much of last week because the city simply isn’t equipped to handle snow. They don’t have the equipment that cities have up north, and even if they did, it was not safe to go out. People just had to wait for it to melt.
New Orleans isn’t alone, however: places across the South, from Texas to Georgia and Florida, all were crippled by snow. Up north, subzero temperatures affected businesses. If there’s a spot you like on vacation or where you know you will eat in the future, spring for a gift card that you can redeem down the road.
Order some merchandise
Commander’s Palace, my former New Orleans neighbor, posted a whole series of videos and photos last week of the iconic turquoise restaurant in the snow.
Simultaneously, CP promoted their gorgeous new line of merchandise, everything from silk scarves to baseball caps and coffee cups. I’m thinking about the tea towels.
This might be the perfect time to send your favorite place a merchandise order or pick some up if you visit in person. If the chef or the owner has a cookbook, they’ll be happy to sign it for you. (Put the dedication in the notes section if ordered online.)
Many places sell packaged treats, too, such as the jams and granola you can get at Biscuit Love in Nashville. Be patient because the snow and ice has slowed down deliveries. But it isn’t too early to think about Valentine’s Day or even Easter.
Send some food
Goldbelly has become one of my favorite places to browse the delectible offerings from restaurants around the country.
Chefs and owners tell me that these can be lucrative for their operations. They set the amount they want to collect, and Goldbelly adds its cut. Shipping is either baked into the price or paid by the purchaser.
At the moment, Goldbelly is promoting food for Super Bowl parties as well as Lunar New Year gatherings.
You can find King Cakes, and pizza from places in New York, Detroit, Chicago and Phoenix. More than 162 restaurants across the South offer their specialties, from Joe’s Stone Crab in Miami to The Grey in Savannah.
Honor your reservation
If you decide to show support by dining out, it’s particularly important now to honor your reservation, assuming that it’s safe to get to the restaurant. I’ve written about all the challenges that restaurants are facing, compounded for those in California in the wildfire region.
While restaurants don’t face the hiring issues they did a few years ago, at least not yet, there are always reasons why employees don’t come in. If you hear about a flu outbreak in your area, you can probably bet it’s affecting restaurants, too. Another emerging issue may be ICE raids, which we are starting to hear about. (More on that in the future.)
Along with staff issues, places can face problems getting ingredients. Right now, that’s eggs, which have become scarce and whose price as soared due to avian flu. Chefs order food based in part on the number of tables that are booked. So, if you are a no show, that could mean those scarce ingredients go to waste.
Let me know in Comments if you have other ideas for helping restaurants right now.
Japanese Restaurants Are Struggling, Too
Japan is known for its small restaurants called izakaya. They’re often run by a chef/owner with perhaps a couple of kitchen staff. Many specialize in a single type of dish. If you’ve seen the show Midnight Diner on Netflix, izakaya will be very familiar.
Unfortunately, izakaya are beginning to fade away, according to The Guardian. They are battling threats on two fronts: soaring costs and declining demand.
Between January and November last year, 203 declared bankruptcy, exceeding the 189 recorded in the whole of 2020, according to Teikoku Databank, which offers financial and research support services.
Cash-strapped consumers are ordering fewer items, while restaurateurs wrestle with higher costs for materials, energy and labor.
About 40% lost money from April 2023 to April 2024, according to Teikoku. Some are trying to stay afloat by reinventing themselves as cafes and fast-food outlets.
However, young Japanese consumers’ habits have changed. Rather than hang out in tiny, smoke-filled places and get drunk on sake and shochu, some prefer trendy dessert and cocktail bars, and others are staying home to drink for less.
A San Francisco Legend Is Closing
On all my trips to San Francisco, I’ve visited Chinatown. My mother, brother and I sat down for a Chinese feast years ago, which was the first time I saw dishes passed on a Lazy Susan.
One of the places I’ve walked by is Sam Wo, founded in 1908, just two years after the city’s famous earthquake. Sam Wo was distinctive for its neon sign reading, “Chow Mein-Noodles, Soups-Fish-Salad.” Its generous dishes were served on blue and white dinnerware, with old-school favorites and more-unusual fare.
Last fall, Sam Wo warned patrons that the restaurant would close this month if it did not find a buyer. Its lease was expiring, and the owner, David Jitong Ho, wants to retire.
And sadly, today is its last day, according to Eater San Francisco. California is losing restaurants left and right, and now another one disappears.
Congestion Pricing Empties Streets — And May Empty Restaurants
On Jan. 5, motorists traveling in New York City began to pay a toll to enter a Congestion Relief Zone that encompasses city streets below 60th Street. The fee is $9, charged once per day, between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays, and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends. There is an overnight charge, too.
The fee, collected through E-Z-Pass, is in addition to tolls. It has had some startling results, with major thoroughfares such as Fifth Avenue and Broadway nearly empty at times of the day.
Now, some restaurant owners are concerned that they could be empty, too. They fear that the bridge and tunnel crowd won’t bother coming into the city, even though it’s Restaurant Week.
"Those extra customers that are coming in from the Tristate area, they may drive in," said Andrew Rigie of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, according to WABC-TV. "Maybe it's really cold out. They don't feel like taking public transportation. I mean, there's a million different reasons.”
Some restaurants are providing discounts for drivers if they show a license and E-Z pass receipt.
Keeping Up With CulinaryWoman
I was tickled this week to be interviewed by The Times of London as part of its coverage of the new administration. I’ll share a link to the story when it’s published.
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Tomorrow, for paid subscribers, I’m sharing some ways to prepare for a big change in your eating habits. See you then, or see you next Sunday.