Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Bagels
Assistant Store Manager
Assistant Store Manager
Posts: 823
Joined: August 20th, 2018, 11:54 pm
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 12 times
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by Bagels »

babs wrote: March 21st, 2020, 6:18 pmI personally haven't been going out to get take out, trying to conserve cash since I don't know if we will have a mild recession or if this is going to be the Great Depression II.

But yeah, we're living in some odd times.
If you're in position to do so, I would suggest you proceed with life as normally as possible. The more people that hoard their cash, the more painful this is going to be...
storewanderer
Posts: 14379
Joined: February 23rd, 2009, 3:54 pm
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 298 times
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by storewanderer »

Bagels wrote: March 21st, 2020, 9:51 pm
babs wrote: March 21st, 2020, 6:18 pmI personally haven't been going out to get take out, trying to conserve cash since I don't know if we will have a mild recession or if this is going to be the Great Depression II.

But yeah, we're living in some odd times.
If you're in position to do so, I would suggest you proceed with life as normally as possible. The more people that hoard their cash, the more painful this is going to be...
My primary concern is drive throughs and not seeing what they are doing to the food, or seeing if anyone working in the place is sick (during the fall/winter months I usually walk from a fast food place at least a couple times a month due to some issue before I order, like observing sick employees or lack of soap in the restroom). The only fast food I normally use drive through at is Chickflia because the parking lot in the location in Reno is undersized and they do an exceptional job moving that drive through line, also they are so well staffed that at least I know the person who handles the money is not handling the food (since the money is handled at a booth in the middle of the drive through lane).

Also noticed tonight In N Out has officially closed its "to go" area. Maybe just at night, maybe all the time. The drive through had the usual 30-40 cars lined up.
Super S
Posts: 2690
Joined: April 1st, 2009, 9:27 pm
Has thanked: 11 times
Been thanked: 61 times
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by Super S »

Bagels wrote: March 21st, 2020, 9:51 pm
babs wrote: March 21st, 2020, 6:18 pmI personally haven't been going out to get take out, trying to conserve cash since I don't know if we will have a mild recession or if this is going to be the Great Depression II.

But yeah, we're living in some odd times.
If you're in position to do so, I would suggest you proceed with life as normally as possible. The more people that hoard their cash, the more painful this is going to be...
Hoarding and conserving are two different things. I am in the same boat. Many of us do not know what the next few months are going to bring, and the next week or two could still bring many changes. I am trying to spend as little money as possible right now with all the uncertainty as I work at a job that, while so far has been unaffected, could potentially see hours cut if this drags on. I am also avoiding drive-thrus and take-out during this time as I can't visibly see if restaurants are taking the proper steps for cleaning etc. right now. I don't want to take the risk.

Hoarding would mean completely emptying my savings account and keeping all my cash at home. I am not doing that, but do have a small amount of cash on hand just in case.
Alpha8472
Posts: 3929
Joined: February 24th, 2009, 8:55 pm
Been thanked: 79 times
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by Alpha8472 »

Some restaurants are getting virtually no customers. The employee at the McDonald's Walmart said it was so slow, that they may have to close. Not having a drive thru means they lose out on many potential customers.

Many restaurant chains are now offering free delivery due to the drop off in business.

However, pizza chains seem to be doing better. Domino's is hiring 10,000 new workers. Pizza chains had a good format all along. They usually have no dining room and are take out or delivery only. In the future, this may be the only economically sound format. Dining rooms will become a thing of the past as people move to take out or delivery to avoid person to person contact.
cjd
Assistant Store Manager
Assistant Store Manager
Posts: 624
Joined: August 18th, 2018, 6:54 am
Has thanked: 3 times
Been thanked: 6 times
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by cjd »

I don't know, to me one of the major things about getting food from a restaurant is the aspect of dining out, either by myself to get out of the house for a bit, or to meet up with someone.

Very rarely do I get food from a restaurant drive thru or take out to eat somewhere else. So I think I'd likely just eat at home more often and save the money if the option wasn't available. I haven't gotten any food from anywhere since the dine in ban has been in effect.

Maybe others feel differently on this. I won't get into all of it here but I think the whole internet age and social media is making people too un-social (and this is coming from an introvert who doesn't care to socialize much, but knows he needs to get out sometimes).
Last edited by cjd on March 22nd, 2020, 5:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
klkla
Posts: 1614
Joined: February 24th, 2009, 3:26 pm
Been thanked: 2 times
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by klkla »

The California ABC (Alcohol Beverage Control) as relaxed regulations and is now allowing restaurants that have liquor licenses to sell their drinks to go.

"What’s required under the new rules is a current ABC license and containers with a secure lid or cap for the alcohol. Alcohol also must be sold with food, all from the same establishment. ABC also lifted its ban on alcohol sold at drive-through windows, and noted that no deliveries are allowed from 2 a.m. until 6 a.m. Distilleries can even jump in with curbside pickups and delivery, but must adhere to the same state mandated maximum of 2.25 liters per consumer per day."

California is always an innovator!

https://la.eater.com/2020/3/20/21188738 ... r-in-place
Bagels
Assistant Store Manager
Assistant Store Manager
Posts: 823
Joined: August 20th, 2018, 11:54 pm
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 12 times
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by Bagels »

Super S wrote: March 22nd, 2020, 7:23 amHoarding and conserving are two different things. I am in the same boat. Many of us do not know what the next few months are going to bring, and the next week or two could still bring many changes. I am trying to spend as little money as possible right now with all the uncertainty as I work at a job that, while so far has been unaffected, could potentially see hours cut if this drags on. I am also avoiding drive-thrus and take-out during this time as I can't visibly see if restaurants are taking the proper steps for cleaning etc. right now. I don't want to take the risk.

Hoarding would mean completely emptying my savings account and keeping all my cash at home. I am not doing that, but do have a small amount of cash on hand just in case.
Don't get me wrong, most everybody will be impacted by this. I'm writing this as a generalization (not directed toward anybody): if your income has or probably will significantly decrease (including an outright job loss), and will have a significant impact on your lifestyle, then yes, begin making changes now. However... if your income hasn't changed and probably won't change much, and it won't significantly impact your lifestyle, then please continue to live as normally as possible. Our economy is based upon spending... the less we spend, the more severe the impact will be. The primary reason recovery following the Great Recession was so tough is because so many people continued to spend conservatively.

So again, if the ensuing chaos means you won't get your bonus for this year, then yes, cancel that Disney Cruise scheduled this fall. But please don't "over do it" and stop supporting your local restaurants.
storewanderer
Posts: 14379
Joined: February 23rd, 2009, 3:54 pm
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 298 times
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by storewanderer »

klkla wrote: March 22nd, 2020, 5:56 pm The California ABC (Alcohol Beverage Control) as relaxed regulations and is now allowing restaurants that have liquor licenses to sell their drinks to go.

"What’s required under the new rules is a current ABC license and containers with a secure lid or cap for the alcohol. Alcohol also must be sold with food, all from the same establishment. ABC also lifted its ban on alcohol sold at drive-through windows, and noted that no deliveries are allowed from 2 a.m. until 6 a.m. Distilleries can even jump in with curbside pickups and delivery, but must adhere to the same state mandated maximum of 2.25 liters per consumer per day."

California is always an innovator!

https://la.eater.com/2020/3/20/21188738 ... r-in-place
As far as health concerns go, if places can still dispense coffee drinks to go and fast food places can still give soda to go, there is no reason why they shouldn't be able to dispense bar drinks to go either.

As long as people do the right thing here, like, not start sipping on these drinks while they are driving home, this may work.

I am not sure restaurants will sell enough drinks to justify keeping the bartender on hand but it is worth a try to see how it works out.

Note it is required to be sold with food. Okay, sure. Bag of chips?
klkla
Posts: 1614
Joined: February 24th, 2009, 3:26 pm
Been thanked: 2 times
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by klkla »

storewanderer wrote: March 22nd, 2020, 9:34 pm I am not sure restaurants will sell enough drinks to justify keeping the bartender on hand but it is worth a try to see how it works out.

Note it is required to be sold with food. Okay, sure. Bag of chips?
The amount of profit in an alcoholic beverage is much higher than food, so I tend to think that some restaurants will be able to make it work.

The chips example would qualify, but I doubt there are many restaurants in CA that have a liquor license and sell bags of chips.
Bagels
Assistant Store Manager
Assistant Store Manager
Posts: 823
Joined: August 20th, 2018, 11:54 pm
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 12 times
Status: Offline

Re: Coronavirus and Empty Restaurants

Post by Bagels »

klkla wrote: March 22nd, 2020, 10:12 pm
storewanderer wrote: March 22nd, 2020, 9:34 pm I am not sure restaurants will sell enough drinks to justify keeping the bartender on hand but it is worth a try to see how it works out.

Note it is required to be sold with food. Okay, sure. Bag of chips?
The amount of profit in an alcoholic beverage is much higher than food, so I tend to think that some restaurants will be able to make it work.

The chips example would qualify, but I doubt there are many restaurants in CA that have a liquor license and sell bags of chips.
People go to the bar because they want to socialize, not necessarily because they want to drink, hence why -- in the era of social media and apps -- the number of bars keeps decreasing. Why pay a $50 tab, when you can spend half that and make the same drinks at home for the next few weeks while you're in isolation? Margins on beverages (in general) are high in CA -- it isn't uncommon for many of my clients to be at or near 90%. It's not alcohol, but I recently had ordered a fountain soda at a popular chain restaurant and was billed $4.79. That same chain restaurant sells fountain soda for about half that elsewhere.

My best guess is this will help chains like El Torito. People ordering from El Torito may decide to add one of their margaritas (it's been awhile since I've ordered margaritas from them, but a quick Google search yields a $6 Happy Hour price, so I'm assuming they're regularly priced at least $8). Whether El Torito prices them at a special or full price, it'll still be a nice, welcomed profit. The lack of alcohol sales has got to be hurting them.
Locked