COVID vs. the restaurant industry

By Dina Usanovic

As a server at Yours Truly, I have been incredibly saddened to see how COVID-19 has affected business. While Yours Truly used to be incredibly busy, with up to 45-minute waits over the weekends, it has turned into a ghost town. With time periods of an hour or two without a single customer in the restaurant, it amazes me we are still in business. While my experience as an employee is restricted to the Yours Truly Medina location, so many restaurants are on the brink of closing because of COVID-19.

I recently visited FatHead’s Brewery in Middleburg Heights, seeing a similar situation to the one my restaurant is in. There were very few customers in the restaurant, as my table was one of five. The Brewery now closes at 8 p.m. during the week and 9 p.m. during the weekend, meaning that they could not sustain their old hours with the business they were receiving. Unfortunately, this is happening to restaurants across the greater Cleveland area. 

It is important to support your favorite local restaurants during this tough time. If you are uncomfortable dining in, try takeout if you are able. Along with that, remember that every employee is hurting as the restaurant is. Bring a friendly attitude and tip your servers if you can. We are all struggling through this unprecedented time, but supporting local restaurants will ensure that they will be around when times are as back to normal as they can be.