LOWELL — The number makes many in the restaurant industry lose their appetite.
The coronavirus pandemic has forced about 20% of the state’s restaurants to close, according to the Massachusetts Restaurant Association.
“It’s incredible,” said Ozzie Filho, who owns restaurants in Groton and Acton.
Two factors will make staying open more difficult for those that have survived. One, a second powerful wave of the pandemic is slamming the country, and area, right now. Two, with winter coming and a warm fall stretch apparently over, sustaining outdoor dining will be a giant challenge.
“We’re doing OK. It’s a struggle. It’s not easy,” said Teddy Panos, the manager of the Athenian Corner, a downtown Lowell institution since 1974. “The razor-thin margins in the restaurant business are gone. I don’t think people are making money in the sit-down restaurant business.”
COVID-19 has decimated the world’s economy. Few industries have been hurt more than the restaurant business.
Hurdles abound. Seating capacities have been lowered. Constant sanitizing and cleaning has to be performed. With the coronavirus a daily story, many people are hesitant to eat out. Earlier curfews have been installed.
Through it all, people like Filho, Panos and Mike Bell, the general manager of the Princeton Station in North Chelmsford, remain steadfast.
Their restaurants will remain open through the winter. Better days, when a vaccine becomes available, will occur. In the meantime, they will adapt, led by making takeout food the staple of their businesses.
“We’re lucky that we have a very large restaurant,” Bell said of the well-known Princeton Street location. “We have great patrons who come in no matter what. Some every week. Some every day. We have a good reputation for cleanliness.”
The Princeton Station can serve up to 282 patrons, when space in four function rooms is included. The restaurant was forced to close March 16 when the virus first hit. It re-opened 100 days later, in June, but not everyone felt comfortable returning.
The decision was made to build an outdoor patio which could seat 48. A week and a half ago, with temperatures rising into the upper 70s, all the outdoor tables were full at 1 p.m., forcing some to wait.
Originally, the outdoor patio was going to close Nov. 1. But the summer-like weather lasted for nearly 10 days and the patio was just recently closed for the winter.
“We’re definitely surviving. We’re doing the best we can do. Obviously we had to cut back on our staff a bit. I do expect it to slow down a bit, especially with them talking of the spike (in the coronavirus),” Bell said.
Bell tries to remain optimistic. But 2020 can make that difficult.
“If I could fast-forward (to 2021), I would,” he said.
In Groton, Filhos Cucina on Main Street continues to do a brisk business.
“You have to adapt, like, constantly,” Filho said. “The community has been phenomenal in supporting us. I’m not trying to brag. (But) our business hasn’t suffered. I’m very proud of our staff for adapting.”
When he opened his Filhos restaurant in Groton in 2002, Filho made a decision. The Groton resident wanted it to offer quality takeout food and make takeout the focus. With the pandemic creating doubt and unease, takeout orders are the lion’s share of his business these days.
Filhos was already in that mode when the pandemic first hit in March. Filhos never closed. After a couple of wobbly weeks, business returned to normal.
“It was an easy transition for us because we were already doing a lot of takeout,” Filho said.
Filho said his Groton store has created more family meals, ones that feed 4-6 people, to meet the demands of the public. In addition, an outdoor seating area for 16 people was constructed. Behind the restaurant, two picnic tables were set up to create more seating. The outdoor seating area proved to be popular and Filho said, weather permitting, they will remain open.
“If we don’t get the snow, we’ll provide the heaters,” he said.
At the Athenian Corner, which specializes in Greek food, Panos estimates that takeout now accounts for about half his food revenue. That’s considerably up from the pre-virus level of 15-20%.
The Athenian closed its doors March 16. An outdoor streetery, with seating for 30, was opened in June and the indoor portion opened weeks later.
“The summer was good. Our takeout business never dropped off, which indicated to me that people were worried to (eat) out,” Panos said.
Panos isn’t a meteorologist. He doesn’t know what kind of winter it will be. But he plans to keep his outing seating available. The city of Lowell has agreed to provide heaters to businesses struggling to stay open.
“We’ll see where that takes us,” said Panos, praising city officials. “They’ve bent over backwards. I can’t tell you how great the city has been. We wouldn’t have survived this without the loyalty of our customers and the community.”
Inside the Athenian, tables are 6 feet apart and there is seating for 25. Since it opened 46 years ago, the Athenian has been a family-run business with a family atmosphere. That close-knit bond has helped the Athenian survive in a year like no other, Panos said.
Not every business has made it. A couple of blocks from the Athenian, the doors of the Old Court are closed. The popular Irish pub and restaurant has been a constant in Lowell’s ever-changing downtown since 2001. News of its closing stunned many, even if it’s possible the Old Court re-opens in the spring.
Nearly 20 years of serving quality food and drink. Now it’s just a memory. Another victim of the pandemic.
The future of many restaurants hang in the balance. Of course, not all the news is bleak.
Panos marvels at the loyalty one of his customers, someone he didn’t know, recently displayed. Day after day, week after week, a Lowell man placed a takeout order at the Athenian.
He didn’t have any ties to the Market Street restaurant. Yes, he liked the food. But the reason for his loyal patronage ran deeper than his hunger.
“I don’t want to see you guys go out of business,” he told Panos.
In 2020, every order matters. Every customer matters.