Planning a night out at your favorite bar or restaurant? Now, more than ever, it’s probably best to call ahead.
There’s a been a recent surge in the number of local restaurants shutting down suddenly, but temporarily, sometimes for just a few days or up to a week. They frequently cite “staffing” shortages, though there are other reasons.
Lately, it’s often because one or more staffers have tested positive for the Omicron variant of Covid-19. That means the employees, even when showing no symptoms, must quarantine for at least five days, sometimes more.
Take the Talking Cursive Brewing Co. in downtown Syracuse, for example. The brewery/restaurant at 301 Erie Blvd. W. closed last week after several employees had shown symptoms and/or tested positive. It reopened Tuesday.
“We needed time to get everyone tested, and make sure we have enough healthy people to open,” said co-owner Andrew Brooks. “We could have opened over the weekend, but at this point it seemed right to take our time and make sure everything is good.”
It’s been a similar story at Joey’s Italian Restaurant near Carrier Circle.
“I had to do this last week,” said owner Joey DeCuffa. “Two of my staff tested positive. They can’t come in. What am I going to do? I just said, ‘Look we can’t do it. Let’s just close and get through it.’ ”
DeCuffa is fortunate because he actually has two two operations in one — the main dining room downstairs and “Pronto Joey’s” upstairs. But each side has had to close for short periods recently. Things should be back to normal today.
For DeCuffa, the decision to shut temporarily is the lesser of two evils.
“I don’t want to open with partial staff,” he said. “We wouldn’t be able to provide the service we want and people expect from us. It’s not right.”
For an industry already having a hard time finding staff, such as cooks, dishwashers and bartenders, the positive Covid tests are providing a new challenge, said Bud Loura, a dining industry consultant with his company, RestaurantQB.
“When you’re struggling to keep enough people on so you can stay open, and then two or three test positive, then you’re really screwed,” Loura said. “It’s happening all over right now.”
It also comes as the Syracuse area’s job growth is among the slowest in the nation.
Staffing issues were cited this week for temporary closings at such places as Ruston’s Diner in Jamesville and Danzer’s German Restaurant in Syracuse.
“Ruston’s will be Closed Temporarily, till future notice, due to a shortage of help. Sorry,” the Jamesville diner posted Monday. On Tuesday, it followed up with a note that it will be closed for remodeling until Jan. 18.
“Due to staffing issues Danzer’s will be closed from 1/11/22 THRU 1/17/22,” the restaurant on Ainsley Drive posted. “We will reopen on Tuesday 1/18/22 @ 11:30AM for lunch. See you next week!”
There are other reasons for restaurants to close temporarily right now. Two local bakeries, Peace Love & Cupcakes in downtown Syracuse and Exhale Cafe & Bake Shop in Camillus’s Township 5 closed Tuesday due to the cold and snow.
Mid-January is often one of the slowest periods of the year for restaurants.
“January is slow to begin with and we’d rather stay home safe and not waste products, payroll and resources for no one to show up!,” Exhale posted Tuesday on Facebook. “We hope you understand and I can’t wait to see you tomorrow!”
At Finally Ours, a diner on Route 175 in the town of Onondaga, next week — Jan. 17 to 24 — is a pre-planned “Winter Break.”
But Dave Laffin, who owns Finally Ours with his wife, Lisa, said the staffing issue combined with the omicron outbreak is real.
“It’s probably a good time for a break anyway,” he said. “Right now if somebody has a runny nose they have to be tested. Then if it’s positive they can’t come in. And that can happen over and over. Hopefully we take the break now and then we don’t have to keep pulling people out again and again.”
Don Cazentre writes for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.