Tablehopper

This week's tablehopper: where to begin?

I didn’t know it at the time, but my last meal out was an extra-special one at the counter of The Bump Bar by California Caviar. I so look forward to being able to see a server’s smiling face like this again. It’s definitely not the case right now. Photo: © tablehopper.com.

Hello my friends. It’s so hard to be writing to you in such desperate, heart-breaking times. It’s mind-blowingly awful out there (so many boarded-up businesses, it’s really hard to see); there is so much loss and fear and sadness and struggle across the board, but I keep seeing such resilience, strength, spunk, community spirit, creativity, generosity, heart, and soul, and it counts for so much. It’s what will get us through.

I’ve been wanting to write to you all this week, but things keep changing by the hour. I just had to say “TIME!” and send this off. These posts will be updated on tablehopper.com as things happen, and I will try to write to you again real soon with more updates. Let’s just say I’m hearing about things that are in the works.

I’ve been posting a bunch of updates on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, so please follow along there for the latest.

I’m going to keep this intro short because I just need to hit send and take a break from this computer. And exploding inboxes.

You are all in my thoughts. I love you. Be safe. Stay home. Take care of each other. Look out for those who need our help the most. Check in on your service industry friends, they really need us to take care of them for a change.

With love, ~Marcia

the chatterbox

Gossip & News (the word on the street)

The Current Delivery and Takeout Situation for SF Bay Area Restaurants During COVID-19

On March 19th, Governor Newsom issued a statewide, stay-at-home order in California to “flatten the curve” of the spread of COVID-19. San Francisco was already ordered to stay at home on March 17th, making it literally impossible for food-loving San Franciscans to dine in restaurants. (As if things weren’t bad enough for restaurants of late.) Some restaurants have decided to offer take-out only, while others are scrambling to add third-party delivery (as you can imagine, there is quite a backlog). Some restaurants have opted to temporarily close for now, like Souvla, even though they already had a robust delivery and take-out business. So many are in danger of closing permanently (RIP to our dear Locanda, which has confirmed their closure is sadly permanent).

In all cases, restaurants are assessing what their employees want to do: do they want to work? Or do they want to go home and limit their exposure? Even running a skeleton crew in a spotless, sanitized kitchen with the utmost safety standards still presents proximity and contact with fellow workers, customers, delivery folks, products, money, and more. My mind reels at how many restaurant industry workers don’t have a job right now. And bars and clubs, all closed. It’s unfathomable. (And we should be especially concerned about our undocumented workers, who can’t collect unemployment.) More on how to support our F&B folks in another post.

It’s troubling that delivery—which has been destroying our city’s dining landscape—is now part of its survival right now. Sadly, these third-party apps have had a rather mercenary and unsupportive response to this current and unprecedented crisis. If you have the choice, please do takeout to save the restaurant the delivery commission fee they’ll be charged, which can go up to 30 percent. Takeout puts the money directly into the hands of the businesses, so that’s the best option.

Delivery happens, though, and it’s a sensible way to show your support, get fed, and minimize contact (most third-party apps have instituted no-contact delivery). And now that businesses that serve food and have a beer and wine (Type 41) or liquor license (Type 47) can now offer to-go and delivery of beer and wine, liquor, cocktails, and more, depending upon which license they have, well, wow, that helps. (More on that here.)

But not all delivery services are created equal, especially now. I’ve looked at the fine print of some of our local delivery companies and what they are and aren’t offering during this crisis. I’ve included my discount codes to incentivize you to order delivery to support restaurants, and in turn, thanks for helping me support them, too.

Postmates has waived commission fees for new vendors to the platform in SF (for now—no word on when the offer ends), so more money goes to the restaurant. Pre-existing accounts don’t seem to get any relief. At least they’re looking out for their workers with the “Postmates Fleet Relief Fund, which aids our Postmates in covering the costs of co-pays or medical expenses related to COVID-19, regardless of diagnosis. Additionally, in the event a fleet member tests positive for Covid-19 [sic], the fund can be used to cover 2-weeks paid sick leave.” You can use my code for $100 off delivery fees.

Uber Eats has waived delivery fees on thousands of restaurants, which is great for you, the consumer, but I don’t see anything about lowering or waiving commission fees for the vendors, who are the ones who really need the money right now. One good thing: restaurants can opt to receive daily payments on all Uber Eats orders, rather than weekly. Oh, and Uber Eats is committing 300,000 free meals to first responders and healthcare workers in the U.S. and Canada—interested officials and organizations can email here. Get $7 off your first Uber Eats order; use my code at checkout: eats-ubertablehopper.

GrubHub/Seamless made big noise about waiving fees, but in fact they’re just deferring them, which means they can come back to claim them (and you know they will). And partners have to commit for a year. In any event, take an extra second and make sure the restaurant you think you’re ordering from is actually delivering through that service, mmkay? And think about using someone else, they really don’t care one iota about the restaurants on their platform—just read their latest “support” initiative.

DoorDash/Caviar were the last to announce anything, but are doing similar lackluster programs. From now through the end of April, independent restaurants can sign up for free with DoorDash and Caviar and pay zero commissions for 30 days. This is not a deferral of fees, nor will merchants be asked to pay anything back, so that’s helpful. The small bone they threw existing DoorDash and Caviar partners is that restaurants will pay no commission fees on pickup orders. Which is pretty pointless—you could have just called the restaurant and ordered takeout. (AND: you can’t even leave a tip with their pickup interface, so bring cash.)

They mention they “are also providing additional commission reductions for eligible merchants that are already on DoorDash”—but no word about pre-existing Caviar accounts. And they also say they’re “earmarking up to $20 million in merchant marketing programs to generate more revenue for restaurants that are already on DoorDash,” when I say just give the restaurants the money to survive right now.

I do appreciate that they “are joining forces with community organizations to deliver an estimated one million pounds of groceries and prepared food through our national partner, United Way Worldwide, serving seniors, low-income families, and mobility-impaired individuals across the U.S.” And somehow, they are “shipping more than 1 million sets of free hand sanitizer and gloves to Dashers and Caviar couriers.” So, there’s that. Here’s $10 off your first two Caviar orders.

Delivery has become a necessary evil to help some restaurants even have a shot at survival right now. It feels like putting the smallest Band-Aid on a brain hemorrhage, but something is better than nothing. Sadly, none of the delivery services are offering true support. But if any restaurants have a positive story to share, like a pre-existing account getting a discounted commission fee, please let me know.

So, if you can’t do takeout, but you still want to show support through delivery, here’s an idea: after you place your order and you’re waiting for your food, why don’t you send a private message on Instagram to the delivery company you just used, and demand they lower or eliminate delivery commission fees for restaurants right now—not just new accounts, and not just deferral. Heck, send a message to all of them. Comment on their latest IG post. Post a picture of your food and say: “I wish I could have had this delivered without “X: third-party app” charging “X: restaurant name” a delivery commission fee.” Tweet. Write a Facebook post and tag them. Make sure your friends and fam know to #supportsmallbusiness.

I wish the consumer had the choice to reverse a no-delivery fee and be able to pay for the delivery and send the fee/money to the restaurant/vendor.

These commission fee policies won’t change unless we get loud about them. It’s not the time for these third-party apps to be profiting off of the businesses that are absolutely drowning right now—they need to be SUPPORTING THEM.

And PLEASE TIP YOUR DELIVERY PERSON. BIG. They are exposing themselves to all kinds of potential risk right now to bring you food and make a living. Tip your counter person if you’re doing takeout. Tip the restaurant. Almost every restaurant I know has launched a GoFundMe or virtual tip jar on Venmo or PayPal for their staff and survival. Contribute if and where you can. Ask a favorite restaurant how you can help if they haven’t posted anything.

Know someone who just got laid off? A senior? Someone who is self-quarantined? Food-insecure? Send them food! There are also restaurants that are offering affordable or free meals for those in need, like Che Fico, Bistro SF Grill, Split, and Mixt. (Check my Instagram Stories for details.)

I love the restaurant community so damn much. They are generous, talented, scrappy, hard-working, nimble, altruistic, and OG hustlers. They are scrambling to do what they can to survive. Many are pivoting to offer meal kits, family-meals, health-boosting dinners, meals for $5.50, pay-what-you-can meals, pay-it-forward meals…some are just offering delivery and takeout so they can pay their staff and are not taking any profit. Some have converted their restaurant into a general store/pantry, like Prairie and now Verjus.

Personally, I’m experiencing a deluge of emails, DMs, tags, tweets, and more. I’m trying to keep up but it’s daunting. (Apologies to anyone I haven’t replied to or RT’ed or reposted yet, please know I’m trying!) If you’re on Instagram, tune in to my Instagram Stories (what, you weren’t following @tablehopper already?), where I’m trying my best to quickly showcase which restaurants are adapting by offering new takeout menus and more. It’s super-inspiring to see these folks get so creative in tough times. Click through to the original posts for more details. Forward to friends. Repost! Hit save on any you want to support so you remember.

You can keep up in my Stories, and check the following Highlights for recaps. Please note d/t stands for delivery/takeout.

SF d/t 510 d/t 650 d/t North Bay d/t

There’s also an F&B resources highlight, where I’m posting any updates to help service folks.

For those of you who aren’t on Instagram, I’m sorry, but you can always sign up for an account so you can access all this info. It’s easy. You don’t have to post a thing, just follow. ;) (Sadly I can’t forward many of these Stories to Facebook.)

I don’t have the bandwidth to maintain a comprehensive list on tablehopper—it’s like drinking from a firehose right now, and it’s just me over here. But you can check out some super-helpful interactive maps and lists from Edible SF, Dining at a Distance, Resy, and natch, the Chronicle. Woso has this map up to support small businesses that are open right now. RESTAURANTS: make sure your business is added! There are also these handy 510 roundups from Nosh and Eater.

Pantry full but you still want to support? Give yourself the gift of future delicious meals! Gift cards are an easy way to give these restaurants a much-needed infusion of cashflow now—and some are even offering them at a discount. If you are a restaurant and don’t currently offer gift cards, here’s how. Here’s a page (Save Our Faves) with a collection of gift cards you can purchase (and get your restaurant added to).

People: please keep in mind that if and when these restaurants get back up and running, who knows when, don’t all rush in to cash that gift card at once, they’re going to need to time to get out of the hole and make some revenue. And if they sadly close, please don’t try to collect. (Restaurants: please note you are legally liable for those gift cards—unless you declare bankruptcy—but hopefully people just look at them as a donation.)

Big props to my paesano Sean Timberlake for lending a helping hand with this piece. He and his husband, realtor dpaul brown, have been helping to amplify local restos who are pivoting during this time.

A Letter from the Golden Gate Restaurant Association (GGRA)

Fellow restaurant owners/chefs and family,

We want everyone to know that during this crisis we at the Golden Gate Restaurant Association (GGRA) are making all our resources and information available to our whole restaurant community, regardless of if you are a member or not. We have been working with SF officials closely over the past few weeks and are continuing to share out all information/resources/help we can.

I feel your pain personally, having closed my two restaurants, Terzo and Rose’s Café on Monday night and laid off all our employees. I took on this role of acting Exec. Director in January and promise our team is approaching this from understanding the real pain of owner/operators and chefs.

I know there is frustration and folks want to do separate asks, etc. but I suggest if we all share info and work together we’ll have a shot at accomplishing more.

You can join our GGRA Facebook page and connect to our newsletter/member blast list.

Here is a link to the latest newsletter, which is full of resources and important info.

You can reach out to me directly, or on my mobile 415-305-3020.

We will continue to work on several ways to get cash into our restaurants and employee’s hands as quickly as possible.

With love & hope, Acting Exec Director, GGRA (and owner Terzo and Rose’s Café)

Ways to Find and Give Help During the Coronavirus

We are watching our communities struggle, suffer, and try to survive during this international crisis, and we’re all wondering how to help, or receive help. Here are some resources, articles, petitions, and more. Thanks for helping in any way you can, and if there is something you think I should add, please let me know! I will keep this post updated.

I said this in my other piece, but again, many restaurants, cafés, and bars/clubs are running a GoFundMe or virtual tip jar on Venmo or PayPal for their staff and survival. Contribute if and where you can. Ask a favorite venue how you can help if they haven’t posted anything.

You can help out hospitality workers in need by giving to any number of funds for service workers; check out this spreadsheet of support for food industry workers, with many mentioned in these articles and posts from Food & Wine, Punch, Cherry Bombe, and Eater. I have also seen this: Another Round Another Rally, a nonprofit financial resource for the hospitality industry.

The USBG keeps getting donations to the Bartender Emergency Assistance Program, you can donate or apply here.

And while you’re at it, please don’t forget our artists, performers, and workers—Broke-Ass Stuart has this to say, and there is also the newly launched SF Bay Area Queer Nightlife Fund. DoTheBay has this roundup of ways to help the service and entertainment industry.

So many people are working hard to find solutions. If you’re in the F&B industry and have been affected by this changing market, again, you can hit up this amazing list of resources that just might save your bacon. You might also be eligible for unemployment benefits, so take it where you can get it.

Are you an employer? The Office of Economic & Workforce Development has created a webpage with resources for San Francisco employers and employees concerning the COVID-19 outbreak. You can also donate. Watch this space for more.

Restaurateurs should also check into the Small Business Association’s Disaster Loan Assistance program to see if it can help through the lean times.

Still want to help but don’t have the scratch? Signing petitions costs nothing but your time. Urge Mayor Breed to set up a fund for interest-free loans for small- to medium-sized businesses so they can keep the lights on, and reach higher to demand government around the country to offer unemployment benefits, waive taxes, and temporarily bend permits to allow businesses to adapt. Come on, it’ll only take a sec.

The National Restaurant Association has posted this petition to Tell Congress to Support Restaurants and Our Employees! Please sign it and pass it on—it’s getting some momentum!

Call your Representatives and Senators and demand that independent restaurants are part of the federal stimulus plan. Call 202-224-3121 to be connected to the Capitol switchboard.

Got a car? Sign up to volunteer to deliver food to people in (really serious) need with Project Open Hand and Meals on Wheels. Upside: There’s, like, no traffic out there.

However you cope during these difficult times, stay safe, stay informed (here too), check in on folks, and wash your damn hands.

Props again to my pal Sean Timberlake for helping me with this piece.

the lush

Bar News & Reviews (put it on my tab)

You Can Now Order Cocktails for Delivery in CA (and Other Big News from the ABC)

Call it a booze miracle: California’s Alcoholic Beverage Control just lightened up on some regulations during this stay-at-home order, and I can assure you a number of SF Bay Area bartenders are about to launch some very clever beverage service, coming to a takeout window or delivery service ASAP.

There are a number of changes, but the big one is that restaurants that offer food service and have a Type 41 (beer and wine) or Type 47 (liquor) license can now prepare cocktails, snap a secure lid on, and sell it to you at their takeout window to go, or via a third-party delivery app. The hitch: you also have to order food.

Now, this doesn’t mean we’re like New Orleans and you can roam around with your Hurricane in the streets, and really, you should be at home. But wow, you can actually have a carafe of Margaritas delivered to your door with some guacamole and chips and that sounds like a good time to me.

Another big change: any Type 41 and 47 licensed businesses can now sell bottles to go. Many have license conditions that prohibit off-sale privileges, but those conditions have been lifted for the time being. So, if you want to sell your cellar of wine, special beers, a bottle of whisky, or your back bar of rare spirits, you can (depending upon which kind of license you have).

Sales can also go from 6am until 2am! (It just depends upon how early and late the business wants to stay open.)

There are definitely some finer points to all of this, and restaurants, double-check with your attorney before you launch your new Bloody Mary-to-go service (you are liable, not the delivery service), but this is about to help a bunch of places boost their takeout/delivery check average, sell off some inventory, and help take the edge off for a bunch of us at home.

I’ll be updating my Instagram Stories with who’s doing what.

Big thanks to my good buddy Tom Kerr of Strike Kerr & Johns for walking me through the new regs.