Pepe's in Midlothian has set up a curbside pickup area for takeout orders. (Photo courtesy Pepe's)
Two weeks — that’s how long it’s been since Richmond restaurants started furloughing employees, shutting their doors to the public, pivoting to takeout concepts or shutting down for the forseeable future.
Ten weeks — that’s how much longer online ordering, to-go boxes and waving at restaurant workers from inside our cars may be the new norm, following Gov. Ralph Northam’s "stay at home" order issued on Monday and in effect, if not extended, until June 10.
The transition from china plates to cardboard containers and from bustling dining rooms to online ordering and strict safety guidelines has differed for every restaurant. While many owners are equivocal about the sustainability of takeout operations, they say their primary focus is supporting their staffs in any way they can and emerging from this pandemic safely.
“The only reason we stayed open and trying to get creative is to keep employing people and pay people as much as we can,” Pepe’s co-owner Paulo Benavides says, sharing that they have been splitting tips among staff members.
The 9-year-old Mexican eatery in Midlothian began curbside pickup and adopted a text ordering system two weeks ago. When diners pull up, they park in a numbered space and text the restaurant to inform them. “Similar to Sonic,” says Benavides, who also co-owns Hibachi Box, a fast-casual teppanyaki spot on Harrison Street near VCU.
“We had to create a whole new system, and we learned the hard way because we are just kind of going blindly,” he adds, noting that typically the majority of Pepe’s business was dine-in. Ninety percent of the restaurant’s ordering is now done online, and delivery is limited to Monday through Thursday, as it became too overwhelming to balance both pickup and delivery on the weekends with limited staff.
“The main concern for everybody is just being able to pay your bills and rent and the payroll,” Benavides says, adding that he has stocked up on to-go containers just to be prepared and the restaurant has started packaging its margarita mix for sale. “For me, as long as I’m making that, I’m fine with that. I’m so sad to see everyone in this situation and where places have closed down, its hard.”
Pepe’s, however, will miss out on one of the biggest days of the year for Mexican restaurants: Cinco de Mayo, an occasion where guests normally would exceed 250. Despite the unprecedented changes, Benavides maintains a positive attitude about Pepe’s future and says that tips have been generous.
“I always say, ‘Things could be better, and they could be worse.’ It’s definitely gotten us to get out of our comfort zone. Sometimes restaurants are always functioning right. … This is a reminder of how you got started — restaurants don’t start with customers, you have to build them and create a following.”
Grisette, Church Hill’s bouchon-inspired restaurant from chef-owner Donnie Glass, open less than a year, has succeeded at just that. Embracing the restaurant's role of neighborhood hub, he launched a weekend pop-up series called Suns Out Buns Out. As the warm weather rolled in, he saw an opportunity.
“It’s different, fun, lighthearted, and a big part of what my job is right now isn’t to run this restaurant, it’s to make everyone happy,” he says. “It’s no longer about pretty plates or perfect food, it’s about feeding people.”
On a recent sunny Friday, Glass slung 300 burgers. A week later he offered lobster rolls and sold out. This Friday is “Tamale Time,” featuring fresh tamales and guacamole with the help of newly relocated chef Zach Garza.
“We do more [sales] on that one day than the rest of the week combined,” Glass says of the events. “Doing an event once a week instead of trying to bleed out sales seven days a week has been very, very successful for us. ‘Cuts through the noise,’ is what Kendra [Feather] from The Roosevelt said, and I never really thought of that.”
Orders at Grisette are placed via phone and email. Glass uses Google Docs to keep track of them, and each afternoon around 2 or 3 p.m. he calls to confirm before hopping on the line in the kitchen. Initially, Glass says people paid upon pickup but quickly realized that prepaying led to minimal contact, and the restaurant is hoping to set up online ordering soon.
Glass acknowledges that part of Grisette’s successful transition is its location, business that already ebbed and flowed weekly, and a size that makes it more adaptable than a large restaurant group.
“We as a restaurant are positioned to survive this thing a lot better than others … but that’s just where we stand as an individual, stand-alone restaurant, and it’s not like that for everyone.”
R&L Hospitality Group recently employed almost 400 people in its Richmond restaurants. Director of Operations Shannon Conway says, “We have about 10 to 12 people now, and all of us are just showing up to keep it going.”
Balancing multiple restaurants with varying concepts presents its own set of challenges, and R&L spent a week figuring out the best way to move forward before debuting takeout options. The group’s only operating restaurants currently are Lunch and Supper and The Grill at Libbie and Patterson, which feature a menu slimmed down to about a third of the usual offerings. Regulars at The Grill have been showing up for curbside takeout, but Conway says that sales at Lunch and Supper, which she considers more of a destination, are way under expectations.
“At Lunch/Supper we have people that come in once a week or twice a month, and that’s who we need to find and keep that relationship going.” Conway says they are now offering delivery and hope to debut a community drop-off program and partner with neighborhoods.
“If it were to stay exactly like this, operationally … it’s definitely not sustainable,” she says. “We are all going to have to think really hard of what to make of this. It's painful to not say, 'This is what we're going to do,' or [be able to] say with great certainty, 'This is the outcome.' ”
Following the cancellation of Shamrock the Block in March, the owners of the homey breakfast-lunch spot Moore Street Cafe, Charlie Hughes and Amy Quidley, initially removed tables from the restaurant and closed off every other booth to ensure customers were 6 feet apart. After a "mess" of a day, they decided to shut their doors and operate with carryout only.
“Nothing is the same as coming to eat inside a building,” Hughes says. “We’re doing food truck business with restaurant costs. We’re shoveling out some food, but we have a whole restaurant behind it.”
Since the switch, the Scott’s Addition diner has done away with daily specials, is offering breakfast all day and has extended its hours to Sunday. They have had to purchase different credit card processors and are currently working to transition to an online ordering platform.
“It’s just been one giant reaction to what’s going on and changing the way we do things. We’re figuring out what’s working and what is not,” Hughes says.
The cafe's tables, normally lined with wallet-friendly mimosas, diner coffee mugs or towering club sandwiches, are now covered with bags and boxes. Hughes says he’s been watching movies like "Stepbrothers" and "Ferris Bueller’s Day Off" to keep up his spirits, and although business has been steady, it’s hard to determine whether this initial support is short-lived, and he’s unsure how long the business can last.
“I could not operate like this long term. Could we hang on for little while and keep the staff working and keep it going for a few months? Yeah. But if this was the new normal … and this was how restaurants had to be, this place could not do that, and I doubt many others could.”
