‘Bar Rescue’ host Jon Taffer: Things aren’t going to be the same for restaurants after coronavirus
‘Bar Rescue’ star on ‘devastating’ impact of COVID-19 on restaurants
Jon Taffer discusses how the restaurant industry is getting crushed by coronavirus and the spacing problems they will face once they reopen
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In an appearance on “Fox & Friends” Thursday, “Bar Rescue” host Jon Taffer raised concern for the coronavirus shutdown’s negative impact on the restaurant industry.
Taffer said it’s «devastating» to think about restaurant and bar employees not being able to go back to work.
“It’s a huge challenge, particularly for the restaurant industry. Things are not going to be the same when this is over,” Taffer said.
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Taffer said that the restaurant industry is in “big trouble” because while the coronavirus relief package is providing “compensation for employees, utilities, and rent,” there is “no provision for reopening.”
Taffer explained: “For example, when a restaurant opens, they’re going to have to spread their seating to create more social distancing within the restaurant.”
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“That’ll drop the capacity of that restaurant 40, 50, even 60 percent based upon the floor plan. So, they have much smaller restaurants to deal with now in size so they’re going to hire less employees because they have less customers,” Taffer said.
Furthermore, Taffer said that the restaurant industry cannot reopen without inventory.
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“There is no government program open right now to facilitate inventory because all of [the restaraunts] refrigerators are empty. If they don’t fill those refrigerators and 40 percent of these restaurants don’t open, farmers don’t get those orders, food manufacturers, distributors don’t get those orders.
“There’s a real supply chain impact if these restaurants don’t reopen,” Taffer concluded.
Meanwhile, the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits swelled to 6.6 million last week, surging for the third consecutive week as strict measures to contain the novel coronavirus paralyzed the nation’s economy.
