Hospitality

KRG Hospitality Mindset Coaching
by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Introducing KRG Mindset Coaching

Introducing KRG Mindset Coaching

by David Klemt

KRG Hospitality Mindset Coaching

Seeking an alternative to complete start-up planning and project management? The solution you’re looking for is KRG Mindset Coaching.

Just like every operator is unique, each project brings with it distinct challenges that require individual approaches and plans.

Some projects are already under way but need help moving forward. KRG Mindset gives these projects the help needed to cross the finish line and achieve long-term success.

What is Mindset Coaching?

Owning a hospitality business may look great on paper, but starting a hospitality business can be really quite stressful:

  • There are what seem to be endless hours of planning.
  • There are numerous third-parties involved.
  • There are often hundreds of thousands of dollars at stake.
  • There are over 500 unique tasks to complete.

It doesn’t matter if this is your first, fifth, or twentieth project—it’s crucial that you be both prepared and organized when opening a new concept or expanding operations.

However, not every project requires our full suite of targeted solutions, which includes feasibility studies, conceptual planning, business planning, brand development, guest experience strategies, food & beverage programs, and operational assessments.

If you’re beyond the idea stage but find your project is struggling to reach the finish line, we’re here to help. And just like a project in its earliest days, you’ll receive the unique, fully customized KRG treatment.

Is Mindset the Solution for You?

KRG Mindset provides a unique, coaching-style program that helps your start-up make continual forward progress:

  • Receive a dedicated consultant who will be an approachable advisor for you and your project. They’ll review and navigate your start-up questions and challenges, and be your compass to provide you with a clear path towards a successful opening.
  • Weekly 1-on-1 video/phone sessions with access to a private calendar: a weekly session in which we evaluate the past week and define required actions for the next week with a focus on budgets, timelines, and industry-specific consulting.
  • Your dedicated consultant is also available for second opinions and the review of: key documents, location, concept, branding, layouts, equipment, menu, service, technology, labor and financial optimization, system development, operations, marketing, and overall strategic clarity.
  • Your consultant will help you see the blind spots throughout your project, positioning you to maintain your budget and desired opening date.
  • Your consultant will help you make strong, educated decisions throughout your start-up project that will have a positive impact on the successful start of your restaurant, bar or hospitality brand.
  • And finally, your advisor will coach you so you become more confident, energized, and motivated about your opening while holding you accountable and helping you become a better leader through the creation of new habits, communication methods, and decision-making processes.

Click here to schedule a call.

Or, if you’re looking for a more hands-on approach where we develop the winning plans and property for and with you, we invite you to learn more by choosing your preferred option: Restaurants & Cafes, Bars & Lounges, Boutique Hotel & Resorts, or Golf, Gaming & Entertainment.

Images: KRG Hospitality

by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

What You Need to Know About SBA Form 3508S

What You Need to Know About SBA Form 3508S

by David Klemt

Midway through last month, the Small Business Administration maneuvered to make the PPP loan forgiveness process simpler for loans up to $150,000.

In December of 2020, Congress passed a Covid-19 relief bill that pumped $284 billion into the Paycheck Protection Program.

Twelve billion dollars were made available to minority-owned and “very small” businesses, and $15 billion were made available to independent movie theaters, live music venues, and cultural institutions.

What is SBA Form 3508S?

Simply put, 3508S is a simplified, one-page PPP loan forgiveness form.

When Congress passed December’s relief bill, they included a requirement for the SBA to offer streamlined loan forgiveness forms.

To that end, 3508S is for businesses that received loans of $150K or less. Again, it’s a single page. As you’ll see when you check out SBA Form 3508S, the form comes with instructions.

What information do you need to provide?

With Form 3508S, you’re not even filling out an entire page. And the first roughly third is simple. Assuming you’re the person filling out, certifying and signing the form:

  • Business legal name (“Borrower”)
  • If applicable, the DBA or Tradename
  • Business address
  • North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code (Accommodation and Food Services is 72; Arts, Entertainment and Recreation is 71, for reference)
  • Business Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), Employer Identification Number (EIN), or Social Security Number (SSN)
  • Primary contact
  • Email address

After filling out that section and ticking the box for first-draw PPP loans or second draw, you’ll need the following info:

  • SBA PPP loan number
  • Lender PPP loan number
  • PPP loan amount
  • PPP loan disbursement date
  • The number of employees at the time of the loan application
  • Number of employees at time of loan forgiveness application
  • Covered period of PPP loan. Per the form instructions, “The Covered Period begins on the date the loan was originally disbursed. It ends on a date selected by the
    Borrower that is at least 8 weeks following the date of loan disbursement and not more than 24 weeks after the date of loan disbursement.”
  • Total amount of loan spent on payroll costs
  • Requested amount of loan forgiveness

From there, you initial two boxes–if you can do so accurately and honestly–next to certification statements. Then you sign, print and the date form and include your title.

There’s an optional demographic information section at the top of page two of Form 3508S.

SBA Form 3508A. Sample only.

What additional documentation must you provide?

None, which is what makes this form so simple. In fact, you’re not even required to show any of your calculations corresponding form sections. However, we strongly suggest you run those calculations as you’ll need to certify that you did so and you’ll need them if the SBA audits the loan.

And while you don’t have to submit additional documents, it’s likewise required and smart that you retain required documentation for a number of years. The SBA may ask for certain documents when your application comes up for review, so you’ll want to know where they are to make the process as smooth as possible.

What’s the loan forgiveness deadline?

There’s no specific date in terms of an SBA PPP loan deadline. However, the SBA’s PPP loan forgiveness FAQ states the following:

  • “Borrowers may submit a loan forgiveness application any time before the maturity date of the loan, which is either two or five years from loan origination.”
  • “[I]f a borrower does not apply for loan forgiveness within 10 months after the last day of the borrower’s loan forgiveness covered period, loan payments are no longer deferred and the borrower must begin making payments on the loan.

You may notice that Form 3508S has an expiration date of July 31, 2021 in the upper right-hand corner. This simply indicates the SBA’s compliance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act.

There are other SBA PPP loan forgiveness applications as well. SBA Form 3508-EZ is for borrowers who meet specific conditions, and Form 3508D is for borrowers to disclose controlling interests in the business by other companies, along with government officials involved in the business.

If none of those forms are right for you, you’ll have to fill out the standard, five-page Form 3508.

Image: Cytonn Photography from Pexels

by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Current Restaurant and Bar Restrictions: Las Vegas, Nashville, Philadelphia, Orlando

Current Restaurant and Bar Restrictions: Las Vegas, Nashville, Philadelphia, Orlando

by David Klemt

KRG Hospitality has turned hospitality industry visions into reality throughout the United States for several years.

Currently, we operate in Las Vegas, Nashville, Philadelphia and Orlando, along with the surrounding areas. Of course, we’re available to take projects from the idea phase to opening doors and beyond in other markets.

We’ve reviewed and gathered the current Covid-19-based restrictions for each of the four main US markets in which KRG operates to help current operators and those considering taking the next steps in their journey toward opening their own businesses.

To book a 15-minute introductory call to discuss your project and how we can help you realize your vision, click here.

Las Vegas

Set to expire on January 15, Nevada’s statewide “pause,” first implemented on November 24, was extended January 11 for a further 30 days. Guidance can be found here.

Requirements

  • Restaurants and bars must reduce capacity from 50 percent to 25 percent for both indoor and outdoor dining.
  • Bar seating must be social distanced.
  • Walk-ins are prohibited. Guests must make reservations.
  • Masks must be worn when a guest isn’t eating or drinking.
  • No more than four people may share the same table.
  • Nightclubs and dayclubs aren’t permitted to open.

Recommendations

  • Curbside, delivery, and/or takeout are encouraged.
  • Restaurants and bars should continue to make hand sanitizer available and conduct health screenings and/or temperature checks.
  • Limit personal gatherings to ten people from a maximum of two families.
  • Wear masks at indoor and outdoor gatherings.

Nashville

Among Nashville’s restaurant and bar guidance is the “No Seat, No Service” mantra. Additional requirements and recommendations are below, and detailed information can be found here.

Requirements

  • All residents and all visitors must wear face coverings when in public.
  • Restaurants and bars limited to 5o-percent capacity, with social distancing.
  • Tables must be socially distanced. Limited to eight people per table.
  • Surfaces must be cleaned after they’ve been used by patrons.
  • Standing at the bar is prohibited–bars are seated-service only.
  • Remember “No Shirt, No Service”? The new rule is “No Seat, No Service.”
  • Customers must wear a mask when standing up and walking through the restaurant or bar.
  • Entertainment is permitted but barriers must be in place between performers and customers. However, dance floors are prohibited.
  • Bar games and activities like darts, arcade games, etc., must be sanitized in between uses.
  • Last call for service is 10:00 PM, which is also the cutoff for entry.
  • No self-service food or condiments are permitted.

Recommendations

  • Governor Bill Lee urges Tennesseans to wear a mask, gather only with immediate household members.
  • Display this sign to show commitment to mandated and recommended health and safety rules and practices.
  • Use contactless, virtual or disposable menus.

Philadelphia

The current restrictions went into effect November 20. Click here for the full list of requirements and recommendations. You’ll find the city’s complete hotel guidance here.

Requirements

  • Required protections: Masks, Barriers, Staff education, Employee symptom screening and isolation of infected employees, Ensure employees can remain six feet away from one another; Handwashing on employee arrival and in accordance to established food safety precautions, Follow Department of Public Health Food Safety regulations.
  • 25-percent capacity of stated fire code occupancy.
  • Guests may not stand in the restaurant or sit at the bar.
  • Alcohol may only be served on-premises if it’s part of the same transaction as a meal.
  • Table capacity of four people of the same household or less.
  • Outdoor dining capacity limited to fewer than 50 people.
  • Operators must plan for inclement weather in regards to outdoor dining.
  • No entertainment permitted.
  • Indoor catered events prohibited.
  • Last call for orders must take place at 11:00. Business must be closed for service by midnight.

Recommendations

  • Servers should wear face shields and/or goggles along with a mask.
  • Temperature checks for employees and customers aren’t required but no-touch thermometer should be used by establishments that choose to conduct them. Anyone with a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher should be turned away.
  • Consider using physical barriers in between tables.
  • Use contactless payment methods.
  • Promote online ordering, delivery, and curbside pickup options.

Hotel Requirements

  • Required protections: Provide masks to employees, Staff education, Employee symptom screening and isolation of infected employees, Ensure employees can remain six feet away from one another; Provide employees hourly handwashing breaks.
  • Separate staff from customers at ticket and information desks with plastic barriers.
  • Utilize contactless room service delivery.
  • Outdoor events and gatherings are prohibited from exceeding 10 percent of maximum occupancy (maximum of 2,000 persons), even with masks and social distancing. If no maximum occupancy is known, occupancy may not exceed more than 10 persons per 1,000 square feet.
  • Remove self-serve F&B stations from public areas.
  • Remove magazines, menus, and other reusable items that can’t be cleaned from guest rooms.
  • Indoor gatherings and events are prohibited.

Hotel Recommendations

  • Use contactless payment methods.
  • Increase building ventilation.

Orlando

Unlike Las Vegas, Nashville and Philadelphia, Orlando, because it’s located in Florida, has lifted restrictions on restaurants. Section 3: Restaurants of Executive Order 20-244 states:

“Pursuant to Chapter 252, including sections 252.36(5)(b ), (g) and (h), Florida Statutes, and in order to safeguard the economic vitality of this state, any restaurant may operate as set forth below.

“A. Restaurants, including any establishment with a food service license, may not be limited by a COVID-19 emergency order by any local government to less than fifty
percent (50%) of their indoor capacity. If a restaurant is limited to less than one hundred percent (100%) of its indoor capacity, such COVID-19 emergency order
must on its face satisfy the following:

“1. quantify the economic impact of each limitation or requirement on those restaurants; and 2. explain why each limitation or requirement is necessary for public health.

“B. Nothing in this order preempts or supersedes a non-COVID-19 municipal or county order.

“Section 4. Suspension of COVID-19-related Individual Fines and Penalties This order, consistent with Executive Order 20-92, suspends the collection of fines and
penalties associated with COVID-19 enforced upon individuals.”

The order that closed bars has also been rescinded: “Bars and other alcoholic beverage vendors may operate for consumption on premise effective Monday, Sept. 14th
under Phase 2… Adhere to social distancing rules, table seating [six feet] between tables. Alcohol allowed for take-out and delivery.”

However, Executive Order 20-192 is still in place and states:

“WHEREAS, on March 17, 2020, I issued Executive Order 20-68, as extended by Executive Order 20-112, which authorized the Department of Business and Professional
Regulation to ensure all restaurants implement employee screening and to prohibit any restaurant employee from entering the restaurant premises if he or she meets certain criteria indicative of concerns related to COVID-19.”

More details can be found here.

Last updated: January 27, 2021. Please note that Covid-19 guidance, restrictions and protocols are subject to swift change. One should monitor their state, county and city for the latest updates.

Image: Katy Anne on Unsplash

by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Current Restaurant and Bar Restrictions: Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver

Current Restaurant and Bar Restrictions: Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver

by David Klemt

For more than a decade, KRG Hospitality has turned hospitality industry visions into reality throughout Canada.

Currently, we operate in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver and the surrounding areas.

We’ve reviewed and gathered the current Covid-19-based restrictions in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia to help current operators and those considering taking the next steps in their journey toward opening their own businesses.

To book a 15-minute introductory call to discuss your project and how we can help you realize your vision, click here.

Toronto

On January 25, the province of Ontario officially extended the current state of emergency (which includes a stay-at-home order) by 14 days by Premier Doug Ford. Had Premier Ford not extended the emergency order, it would’ve expired Tuesday of this week. Unless extended again, it will expire February 11.

What this means for restaurants, bars and other types of F&B establishments is that indoor and outdoor dining are banned currently. Delivery, takeout and drive-through service are permitted.

Individuals face $750 fines (up to a maximum of $100,000) and corporations could be hit with $1,000 fines (up to a maximum of $500,000 for a director or officer) for a violation of emergency orders.

When the state of emergency expires or is otherwise rescinded, Ontario is expected to revert to the regulations found within the Reopening Ontario Act (currently suspended). Should Ontario find itself immediately colour-coded Grey, the current restrictions on restaurants and bars will remain identical: only delivery, takeout and drive-through service will be allowed.

Among other restrictions, a Red control level means restaurants are restricted to indoor dining capacity of ten people, outdoor dining is permitted, customers must be seated and two metres apart from one another, liquor may only be sold within a 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM window, face coverings must be worn except when eating or drinking, and nightclubs may only operate as a restaurant or bar.

Orange level restrictions include a 50-person capacity limit, a maximum of four people per table, customers must be screened before entry, liquor may only be sold between the hours of 9:00 AM and 9:00 PM, establishments must close by 10:00 PM, and gentlemen’s clubs must remain closed.

The Yellow control level is marked by the following restrictions: no more than six people may be seated at the same table, liquor may only be sold between 9:00 AM and 11:00 PM, establishments must close by midnight, music levels may not exceed that of a “normal conversation,” and all seated patrons must provide contact information.

Green control doesn’t mean everything is back to pre-pandemic “normalcy.” Tables must still be at least two metres apart, customers must be seated, face coverings must be worn except when eating or drinking, no buffet-style service is permitted, nightclubs may only operate as restaurants or bars, and contact information for at least one person per party must be collected. Restricted dancing, singing, performing and karaoke (no private rooms) are permitted.

Calgary

On December 13, 2020, indoor and outdoor dining was banned throughout Alberta. Current Covid-19-related public health measures and restrictions have been extended until further notice. The province’s restrictions affect restaurants, bars, cafes, pubs, and lounges (and other businesses, of course).

Only delivery, takeout and curbside pickup are permitted in Alberta. However, this is expected to change on February 8, 2021.

Hotels, motels and lodges are open but may not offer access to gyms, pools or spas. Indoor dining is banned but room service permitted. Casinos must remain closed.

Movie theatres, bowling alleys, pool halls and other entertainment businesses may not open for business.

If Alberta returns to the previous relaunch strategy, the province will be subject to a three-stage reopening. However, the document hasn’t been updated since June 2020.

Update: Alberta allowed restaurants and bars to reopen for in-person services yesterday, February 8. Indoor alcohol service must end by 10:00 PM, and indoor dining service must cease by 11:00 PM. Contact information from one person of the dining party must be collected, there’s a limit of six people maximum per table and each individual must be from the same household. Alternatively, the maximum per table for an individual living alone is there two close contacts. Tables must be spaced two metres apart and no entertainment is permitted.

Vancouver

British Columbia is far less restrictive than Ontario and Alberta, at least at the moment. The restrictions in place currently affect restaurants, bars, cafes, cafeterias, coffee shops, lounges, and tasting rooms. Nightclubs, however, must remain closed.

Requirements

  • Unless a physical barrier is in place, customers not in the same party must be at least two metres away from one another.
  • No more than six people may be seated at the same table or booth, even if they’re members of the same party.
  • If seated at a counter, customers must be two metres apart unless they’re in the same party or physical barriers are in place.
  • No more than six customers of the same party may be seated at a counter less than two metres from one another.
  • Businesses that offer self-serve food or non-alcohol drink stations must: ensure alcohol-based hand sanitizer or handwashing facilities are “within easy reach”; signage reminding customers to wash or sanitize their hands before touching anything on the stations and to maintain two metres from other customers must be present; utensils and high-touch surfaces at the stations must be cleaned and sanitized “frequently.”
  • Dance floors must be closed, and karaoke, singing, jam sessions, open mic sessions, and dancing are prohibited.
  • Background music or sounds may not be amplified or exceed the volume of a “normal” conversation.

Further details can be found here.

Last updated: February 9, 2021. Please note that Covid-19 guidance, restrictions and protocols are subject to swift change. One should monitor the country, provinces and cities for the latest updates.

Image: James Wheeler from Pexels

by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Tobin Ellis and Barmagic’s Relief Dashboard Contains Hundreds of Restaurant and Bar Resources

Tobin Ellis and Barmagic’s Relief Dashboard Contains Hundreds of Restaurant and Bar Resources

by David Klemt

In keeping with this week’s focus on good news, KRG Hospitality would like to shine a light on Barmagic’s Bar & Restaurant Revival Guide.

First, some background.

Tobin Ellis founded Barmagic of Las Vegas in 1997. He’s done so much for the hospitality industry that it feels almost criminal to just attach a few labels to describe him, but here we are.

Ellis is a hospitality industry innovator, advocate, designer, marketer and consultant. Anyone who has ever attended an hospitality trade show and sat in on a presentation, panel or Q&A session featuring him knows he’s passionate, quick-witted, real-world solution-oriented, and doesn’t suffer pretenders lightly.

He’s also more than put in the work to for the recognition he deserves as an industry icon. Ellis has been in the trenches for decades, beginning his hospitality journey washing dishes in upstate New York. He has worked around the world in essentially every type of venue, from sleepy dives to hyperkinetic high-volume cocktail bars, and everything in between.

A few years back, Perlick partnered with Ellis to create the Tobin Ellis Signature Cocktail Station. This innovative hardware was designed with ergonomics in mind, focusing on improving bar team member’s physical comfort and safety.

Since restaurants and bars found themselves fully in the devastating and nearly inescapable grip of the pandemic, Ellis has focused on the health and longevity of the industry as a whole.

To help operators navigate the pandemic and the myriad challenges (again, a criminal label for what operators and workers have been facing for almost 12 months) it continues to present, Ellis added a Hospitality Relief dashboard to the Barmagic website.

Visitors will find hundreds of links for US- and Canada-based resources, including a relief map for those who need aid or who want to donate to relief efforts. There’s also a link to the Barmagic Bar & Restaurant Revival Guide, a 96-page download loaded with information and ideas that Ellis hopes “might just spark a thought or two” in the minds of restaurant and bar owners, operators, leaders and workers.

We’re not going to get through this if we don’t come together, save as many businesses as possible, and help new venues open and flourish. We applaud the Barmagic relief resources—more like this, please.

Image:

by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

“More help is on the way.” But not for restaurants and bars.

“More help is on the way.” But not for restaurants and bars.

by David Klemt

Speaking about the economic relief package, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) struck what can be generously described as tainted altruism.

“More help is on the way,” said McConnell on the Senate floor on Sunday. He also took the time to attempt to absolve Republican leadership of any blame for the glacier-paced movement forward on relief, laying the fault at Democrats’ feet.

To be blunt, both parties have failed the American people and small businesses in terms of providing federal assistance during the pandemic.

After months of inaction on relief—with the exception of a Congressional vote in September that failed to pass in the Senate—and weeks of discussions and partisan sniping, negotiators finally managed to zero in on a bill with a strong likelihood of becoming law.

Yet sifting through remarks made by some politicians regarding pandemic relief over the course of the past several months, variants of the word “prompt” were bandied about.

If the package passes—which is expected to happen later today—members of Congress and Senate will no doubt perform self-congratulatory victory laps for finally doing their jobs after months of failing to do much of anything in the way of relief. Meanwhile, millions of Americans will continue to face life-altering challenges, reaching out for lifelines that are simply not there.

Included in the package are a number of details identified as “key” to both political parties:

  • The ability for businesses that had received Paycheck Protection Program loans which had been forgiven to deduct the costs said loans covered on their federal tax returns.
  • Speaking of the PPP, it will be reopened with over $284 billion intended for small businesses.
  • $12 billion in available PPP funds for minority-owned and “very small” businesses.
  • $15 billion made available in PPP funds specifically for independent movie theaters, live music venues, and cultural institutions like museums.
  • $600 stimulus checks for qualifying adults (and each child in a household) who earned $75,000 or less in 2019. The amount would be reduced for people who earned more. Those who made $99,000 or more last year are not expected to receive a stimulus check.
  • A $300 boost to unemployment benefits for 11 months, with a possible implementation date of December 27.
  • Gig and contract workers enrolled in the PUA or PEUC programs can expect the same $300 boost to their benefits for 11 to 13 weeks.
  • The deadline to spend billions of dollars made available to cities and states via the CARES Act is expected to be extended from the end of this year to be an entire year.
  • $25 billion in emergency assistance for renters.
  • A moratorium on evictions expected to be extended through the end of January.

What’s not in the package expected to be rushed through Congress? Hundreds of billions of dollars in state and local aid Democrats wanted, liability shields for corporations Republicans wanted, the $120 billion RESTAURANTS Act, or the $240 billion Restaurant and Foodservice Industry Recovery Fund.

Despite McConnell’s declaration that federal assistance is on the way, the economic relief plan leaves an industry that employs millions of American workers and contributes hundreds of billions of dollars to the nation’s GDP (four percent before the pandemic) to fend for itself.

Guy Fieri, in all seriousness, has done more for more unemployed restaurant workers than the government, raising more than $21 million in relief funds in under two months.

The hospitality jobs lost due to Covid-19 aren’t expected to return. With more than 110,000 restaurants closed—and counting—the economic impact will be felt nationwide and, in all probability, have global ramifications.

The PPP turned out to be an absolute farce: billions of dollars went to businesses that are anything but small by definition. There’s little reason to believe the process will improve much (if at all) this time around.

And while restaurants and bars have been crucial to nurturing community, connections and culture since inception, they’re clearly not considered culturally relevant institutions by politicians.

With Congress facing an uphill battle in terms of drafting the language for the relief bill and then voting on it, expecting our elected officials to propose, negotiate, draft and vote on a bill for the hospitality industry seems foolish. That means the earliest the industry can expect help—which seems exceedingly unlikely to ever materialize—is in late February of 2021.

Apparently restaurants, bars, and the foodservice professionals they employ aren’t key to politicians on any side of the aisle. Well, not until they need venues to host their campaign fundraisers, that is.

Image: Andrew Seaman on Unsplash

by David Klemt David Klemt No Comments

Competing Stimulus Plans Fail to Include RESTAURANTS Act

Competing Stimulus Plans Fail to Include RESTAURANTS Act

by David Klemt – 12/3/2020

Talk out of Washington, D.C., about yet more stimulus relief package negotiations is making one thing starkly clear: We’re on our own.

There’s no help coming, not from the federal government.

Unfortunately—but perhaps unsurprisingly—it appears the bipartisan support the RESTAURANTS Act received in Congress was an exercise in optics. The result? Fleeting hope.

Without a signature from the president, it doesn’t matter that Congress voted to pass a revised HEROES Act two months ago. Lest anyone forget, the last time a meaningful Covid-19 relief package was signed by the current president on March 27 of this year.

Another way to put that is that our elected officials haven’t managed to pass a stimulus package signed into law for 251 days. They did, however, find the time for a week-long recess for Thanksgiving.

It was announced just two days ago that a bipartisan group of congresspeople and senators had negotiated a $908 billion stimulus package. The intention was to strike a middle ground between Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) desire for a $500 billion package and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) proposed $2 trillion-plus bill.

Yesterday, multiple sources reported that the $908 billion—which apparently didn’t include the RESTAURANTS Act—was dead on arrival.

Of note, at least to me, is that Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) is reported to have mentioned that this week’s touted bipartisan package had been negotiated “over pizza or pasta at people’s houses.” I have to wonder if the pizza or pasta was prepared, provided and delivered by restaurants that are among the hundreds of thousands facing permanent closure if the government doesn’t actually act in a meaningful way.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, on his way to a House committee meeting, reportedly said, “The president will sign the McConnell proposal that he put forward yesterday, and we look forward to making progress on that.”

From what I was able to glean, the RESTAURANTS Act isn’t included in McConnell’s bill either. Neither are stimulus checks nor a federal boost to unemployment insurance payments. Supposedly it does include an extension of the problematic Paycheck Protection Program (PPP); liability protection for schools and businesses; and a $332 million grant for theaters and live venues.

If the tone of this article comes across as angry, I freely admit that’s an accurate assessment. The RESTAURANTS Act was first introduced to Congress on June 15. Elected officials have had 171 days to help the hospitality industry.

The industry that employs more than 16 million people—11 million of which are employed by independent restaurants. The industry that generates well over $760 billion in annual sales. The industry that accounts for 3.5 percent of America’s GDP. The industry that has for years provided venues, food and drinks for elected officials’ countless re-election campaign fundraisers.

The industry that, should tens or hundreds of thousands of restaurants close their doors permanently, will shed millions of jobs that will not return.

And that’s just what’s happening to the industry in the United States. The industry is similarly at extremely high risk for irreversible devastation in Canada and throughout the world.

So, yes—I’m angry. I’m angry that the millions of jobs and hundreds of billions of dollars this industry contributes just to America apparently don’t mean much to government officials.

I suppose I can only blame myself for holding out hope that the RESTAURANTS Act would be signed into law. After all, the president, speaking about restaurants back in March, said, “they’ll all come back in one form or another,” adding, “It may not be the same restaurant, it may not be the same ownership, but they’ll be back.”

They won’t be back. We’ve already suffered permanent closures. There was no prescience—or empathy—in the president’s statement. Let me make this clear: I’m not laying all of this solely at his feet. America’s politicians on all sides have failed the hospitality industry and therefore millions of Americans.

Restaurants, bars, lounges, nightclubs, hotels… This is an industry that consists of incredibly resilient people. There comes a point, however, that even the most resilient need help.

As hospitality professionals fight to return to their feet, bloodied and battered from countless blows, it doesn’t seem that the government is in their corner. Nothing would make me happier than to be proven wrong, but we’ve been at this crossroads for months now.

Image: Caleb Perez on Unsplash

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