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COVID-19 hurting Surprise eateries

Restaurants seeing big drop even in to-go orders

Posted 3/31/20

Even though a majority of the 150 restaurants the city of Surprise recognizes is still offering take-out or delivery, restaurants are seeing slow demand and rare long lines, despite all dining rooms remaining closed.

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COVID-19 hurting Surprise eateries

Restaurants seeing big drop even in to-go orders

Posted

On a typical Sunday, Biscuits Cafe, 13752 W. Bell Road, is packed with people looking for a breakfast or lunch meal or those just wanting a cup of coffee after attending church.

But these aren’t typical times anymore, in the age of COVID-19, or the coronavirus.

Kelly Payton, the manager at Biscuits, said on a normal Sunday, the restaurant takes in about $11,000 in sales between 7 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

“Last Sunday, we did $1,100 in sales,” said Ms. Payton as the restaurant has moved to take-out and delivery only while Surprise is under a state of emergency because of the virus fears.

The drop in big day sales is rough for the restaurant, considering during the week it can normally bring in $4,000 to $5,000 in daily sales but only mustered about $300 daily in to-go orders in the last week of March.

“It’s been a huge drop,” Ms. Payton said.

It’s forced the restaurant to close completely on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, plus on the days it is open it’s 90 minutes less than it used to be.

Ms. Payton isn’t the only restaurant manager or owner watching crowds dwindle as the coronavirus fears have kept them indoors.

Even though a majority of the 150 restaurants the city of Surprise recognizes is still offering take-out or delivery, restaurants are seeing slow demand and rare long lines, despite all dining rooms remaining closed.

Of those 150 restaurants, a little more than three-quarters of them offer take-out service, while 30 of them have drive-thru service. About 80 of them also offer delivery.

Some are offering drive-thru, take out and delivery, but those are mostly limited to fast food restaurants such as Burger King, Carl’s Jr., Chick-fil-A, Federicos Mexican Food, Jack in the Box, KFC, McDonald’s, Panda Express and Taco Bell.

About 20 Surprise restaurants have had to close completely during the virus pandemic.

They include 5 & Diner 2, 11340 W. Bell Road; Amuse Bouche, 17058 W. Bell Road; Brookside II Sports Bar and Grille, 15170 W. Bell Road; Jim’s Burgers and Eggs, 17019 W. Greenway Road; Mucho Burrito, 14345 W. Bell Road; Pei Wei, 14155 W. Bell Road, plus buffet restaurants such as China Buffet, 17119 N. Litchfield Road; and Golden Corral, 17674. N Litchfield Road.

Daniel Kim, the owner of Big Buddha, 16572 W. Greenway Road, said he was hoping his take-out business we grow a little to offset no in-dining revenue, but that hasn’t happened.

“Actually, take out has gone down about 20% to 30% of normal time,” Mr. Kim said. “A lot of people got laid off right now and they don’t want to eat out.”

In addition to dropping customers, businesses like Biscuits and Big Buddha are losing employees as well.

At Biscuits, Ms. Payton had to reduce her cooking staff from seven to three and she’s down to two staff members a day.

“The plan is to rehire them once we’re back to normal,” Ms. Payton said. “But it just kind of depends on what they’re going to want. They couldn’t not want to come back.”

Mr. Kim said some of his employees left on their own before he had to make cuts.

“I’m not only losing customers, I’m losing employees, too, because they’d rather stay at home,” Mr. Kim said. “At this point (the business is) still OK. If things get worse, I can’t force them to work.”

Right now, he doesn’t need them. Fears of long lines at restaurants haven’t surfaced as of late March.

There are pockets in the morning where the Starbucks at 14369 W. Bell Road has a line of 15 or 20 cars but other times there is nobody in line at the same location within the same hour.

“At this point it’s still a question mark,” Mr. Kim said about things returning to normal. “The president [Trump] wants us to open up by [Easter]. Honestly, I don’t think that’s going to happen.”

Ms. Payton said it’s hard to say how long it will go on.

“We’re hoping its only going to last a few weeks,” she said. “The company is planning [to stay open] about four weeks.”

To help restaurants in Surprise, the city’s Economic Development Department has made available free four-by-four-foot banners that announce the restaurant is open for take-out and/or delivery.

The banners can be picked up outside the main entrance of Surprise City Hall, 16000 N. Civic Center Plaza, by calling 623-222-3329 or emailing Kris.Cassens@surpriseaz.gov.

There’s also a new food option for Surprise seniors.

“Meals of Joy” is now delivering meals for free to those 62 and over. The city has partnered with the non-profit group to also support people 55 and over with a disability.

The temporary, federally funded program is designed to help vulnerable residents maintain social distancing due to medical vulnerabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is an unprecedented time, so we’re trying to do what we can to help those folks who are homebound,” said Seth Dyson, the city’s director for Human Service and Community Vitality, on a video interview with Mayor Skip Hall.

“Meals of Joy” delivers meals that are fresh and ready-to-eat, including a main dish, a complementing side or vegetables, and a salad, fruit and small dessert.

Special dietary restrictions may be accommodated. Each eligible participant may have one meal delivered each weekday.

There can also be more than one eligible applicant per address, but each household resident must complete an application on a first-come, first-served basis.

Eligible residents can receive meal delivery for 30 calendar days.

The program may be extended as funding permits.

To request an application, or for questions, call 623-222-1550, or email neighborhoodservices@surpriseaz.gov.

The Salvation Army is making daily breakfast and sack lunches for seniors, which they are handing out between 7 and 9 a.m. daily. It’s also available to anybody who is “food insecure,” Mr. Dyson said.

Call 623-977-1084.

“We’re a strong and resilient community and we’ll get through this together,” Mr. Hall said at the end of the video for residents about COVID-19.