On Monday, the County of Los Angeles enacted an updated public health officer order in response to surging coronavirus cases, forcing outdoor dining to grind to a halt in an attempt to curb the spread.
The news has been devastating for local eateries, many of which were already struggling due to months of lost profits. Several Santa Clarita restaurants estimated that they would be losing 70-80% of their usual profits if they were unable to open for indoor dining, a margin that has only increased now that they are down to only takeout orders.
“It’s really been a gut punch. We’ve brought back employees; we’ve furloughed them twice,” said Salt Creek Grille owner Greg Amsler. “Which means we have single mothers trying to balance in-home schooling while trying to make a living and that’s very difficult. I’ve had some servers come up and say, ‘what do we do now?’ And we usually have the answers, but we don’t have the answers right now.”
Normally at this time of year, Salt Creek Grille, a Santa Clarita staple for nearly 22 years, would be hosting several private events a day, catering for dozens more, and with around 70 staff members hosting hundreds in their restaurant over the holiday season.
Now, the restaurant’s doors are locked, with a skeleton crew of less than a dozen people. Amsler estimates that with only take-out allowed during this holiday season, the business is taking in only a fraction of what it should be making.
“Steaks and seafood aren’t big takeout type of items. So we’ve had to adapt, we’ve kind of had to shift gears right in the middle,” said Amsler. “We’ve developed more takeout friendly food items, but with no servers, no bartenders, no parties, we’re down to 5-10% of our staff.”
This blow comes after months of restaurants working on trying to adjust to health orders, spending what little money they had to comply with outdoor dining requirements in an attempt to stay afloat.
As of Nov. 24, restaurants and bars within the county accounted for just 3.1% of the 2,257 confirmed COVID-19 cases traced to 204 “outbreak” locations identified by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.
“It seems like the restaurant industry is kind of the punching bag. I’m all for the science, but show me the data that says that outdoor dining is the cause of the latest spike. There is no data, but they’re doing it anyway,” said Amsler. “To single out one industry that employs more people than just about any other industry in the country and to completely lock them down seems unfair.”
Being forced to rely on only takeout orders this holiday season will likely force many venues to close, as they will be unable to stay afloat without the needed funds from large parties. In addition, Amsler estimates that around $30,000 worth of items have been bought in order to provide outdoor dining and preventative measures, including outdoor heaters, tents, and plexiglass dividers for indoor dining. That money will never be recovered, Amsler said, especially with the small amount of money that Salt Creek is able to bring in under the current limitations.
From Monday, Nov. 30, through Sunday, Dec. 20, all public and private gatherings and events with individuals not from the same household are prohibited, except for faith-based services and protests.
Residents are still permitted to travel to and from essential businesses, work or provide services to a healthcare operation or essential business; residents may also engage in essential activities, or participate in permitted individual or household outdoor and indoor activities while practicing required distancing, infection control and masking.
Restaurants, bars, breweries and wineries remain closed for in-person dining and drinking, as there is high risk of transmission of COVID-19 when people are eating, drinking and talking together without a face covering, as happens when people are dining onsite at restaurants. They are permitted to remain open for pick-up, delivery, and take-out and breweries and wineries may remain open for retail sales at 20 percent occupancy.
The quick turnaround from allowing outdoor dining to allowing only takeout has left many establishments in the lurch, especially considering that many had already placed bulk orders for food over the holidays.
See Related: Restaurant COVID-19 Grant Program For Restriction Impact Announced By Los Angeles County
“We did everything that we were told, and that was supposed to prevent the spread. I think most people can survive on outdoor dining,” Amsler said. “But to not have any, just takeout, when people themselves are cutting back on their expenditures, it cuts income down to almost zero.”
L.A. County announced Tuesday that it intended to offer a Keep L.A. County Dining Grant, which provides $30,000 to use as working capital for employee payroll expenses, capital to continue operations, payment of outstanding business expenses, and adaptive business practices needed to remain open, according to the L.A. County Development Authority.
However, the application period would close after receiving 2,500 applications, with preference to be given to restaurants that provided outdoor dining as of Nov. 24. For context, at least 26,000 restaurants are located in Los Angeles County, according to the Department of Public Health.
Thursday morning, the LACDA announced that it was working to swiftly resolve technical issues that had temporarily downed the Keep L.A. County Dining Grant application portal, which saw a surge of thousands of applicants.
“Clearly the need is great and we are working diligently to bring the application back online,” said Acting Executive Director Emilio Salas on Thursday. “Restaurant owners and operators should be assured that this grant program is still available and we are committed to supporting our small, local businesses during this difficult time.”
Local restaurant owners hold little faith that this will be enough to help save their businesses.
“What we need from the community for support is takeout. It’s all we can do, if we can get back as much as we can, a lot of us can survive on takeout,” Amsler said. “Gift cards, takeout and just supporting your local businesses.”
Although straits are dire, Salt Creek is still focused on supporting others in need, offering meals to homeless families with a revamped version of the 10th annual Breakfast With Santa event alongside Family Promise of Santa Clarita Valley, the Domestic Violence Center, Boys & Girls Club and Henry Mayo Hospital, according to Amsler.
Normally, the event serves around 350 people at a buffet breakfast, with every child receiving a present and the chance to meet Santa Claus.
“This year we will be delivering the breakfast to them, so we’re going to the domestic violence center this Saturday to serve 180 people… we will do whatever we can,” said Amsler. “We’re not shut down for charity. We’ll still help out as much as we can. We’ve fed the COVID unit a few times and we will keep doing that.”
Amsler encouraged residents to support their neighbors by choosing to shop and dine local, rather than choosing national chains or going to another county with less restrictions, as for local businesses, there is no safety net.
“The larger national chains can survive because they can take the bite here, but still be open in other states, other areas,” said Amsler. “The independents, like myself and the others in town, it’s us. That’s it. We don’t have any backup, we can’t rely on anything else except what we do. If we can’t do it, we’re done.”
To support Salt Creek Grille and take a look at the streamlined menu, click here.
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