The DashIn Dispatch
All the latest developments from the restaurant biz.
In this edition of our Fresh Take, we look at what the Delta variant could mean for restaurants, and the economy as a whole. The Restaurant Revitalization Fund and the hiring crisis within the industry remain two of our prime focus areas. We end with highlights from Forbes’ coverage of TripAdvisor’s 2021 Travelers’ Choice Best Of The Best Restaurant Awards.
Let’s dig in…
The Delta Variant
John Cassidy of The New Yorker recently authored an article with insights from veteran economists — Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody’s Analytics & Ian Shepherdson, the chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics — titled What Does the Delta Variant Mean for the U.S. Economy? This was followed by a subhead that read Predictions of a second “Roaring Twenties” have proved premature. But it’s not all doom and gloom. Have a look:
Moody’s Analytics has constructed a “Back-to-Normal Index,” which tracks real-time economic data, such as restaurant bookings, the number of people flying, and initial claims for unemployment benefits. At the national level, there is little sign that the variant is affecting these statistics, Zandi told me. However, the index has dropped in some hard-hit states, such as Florida, where case numbers are rising fast and the number of hospitalizations has returned to levels last seen in February. “Six or eight weeks ago, Florida had completely recovered from the pandemic: the index was back to one hundred,” Zandi said. “Now it’s moved back to the low nineties. That’s consistent with the idea that the Delta variant is having some impact.”
Ian Shepherdson, the chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, pointed out that many of the states where the Delta variant is spreading rapidly are low in both population and G.D.P. “To move the needle on a macro level, things will have to get a lot worse,” he said. “I’m still bullish on the second half of the year because I don’t think Delta is going to go exponential nationally. If it just moves up fairly steadily, and it doesn’t lead to a big wave in hospitalizations, I think most people will be fairly relaxed about it, and won’t change their behavior much.”
Both economists said that a key moment will come in a month or so, when schools are scheduled to reopen across the country. The forecasts of rapid employment growth in the second half of this year hinge on many more parents, particularly women, returning to work as child-care concerns ease.
Read the full article, here.
So, what does the Delta variant mean for the restaurant industry in particular?
Nation’s Restaurant News showcased, via its Working Lunch podcast, that the variant will most likely come with new ‘new public affairs and employee relations challenges for operators including masks, immunizations and potentially the return of dining restrictions — to name a few.’ With insights from Align Public Strategies, this one is a must-hear.
Listen to the whole episode below:
The RRF & Hiring Crisis
We start this segment by echoing the sentiments of the Independent Restaurant Coalition — Independent restaurants and bars across the country are still in crisis. Congress must pass the bipartisan Restaurant Revitalization Fund Replenishment Act, which would add $60B to the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) to support independent restaurants and bars.
We urge you to take action by filling out the form in this link.
Restaurants Act, the Public Affairs arm of the National Restaurant Association also recently hosted a Q&A session on the subject with their Executive Vice President, Sean Kennedy.
You can watch the entire virtual correspondence, here.
The Association also published a guide on how establishments can combat the current hiring crisis. It features actionable tips such as:
- Focus on recruiting
- Make applying easy
- Offer robust on boarding
To read the whole piece, click here.
On the subject of hiring crisis, Restaurant Business Magazine also released an article on The Restaurant Return-to-Work Tax Credit Program, a $35 million aid program aimed at encouraging New York’s restaurants to quickly expand their staffs.
For every net new hire, a qualifying establishment will get a $5,000 credit off their 2021 state taxes, up to a maximum of $50,000 per operation. The money will be forwarded to employers ahead of filing their 2021 tax returns to defray the cost of the staff additions and provide working capital.
The program is limited to independently owned restaurants in New York City and other areas of the state that were particularly hard hit by the pandemic. To qualify, establishments have to prove both a loss of sales from the pandemic and the addition of at least one full-time staffer.
TripAdvisor’s 2021 Travelers’ Choice Best Of The Best Restaurant Awards
Forbes’ coverage of the awards states clearly, at the outset, that TripAdvisor has honoured the unprecedented nature of the past year. Their awards rank local hotspots, and help travelers find destinations based on pandemic-era experiences.
Divided among various categories such as Fine Dining, Everyday Eats, Quick Bites, Date Night, Vegan & Brunch Restaurants — the winners are some of the most inimitable dining spots that we’ve read about over the last twelve months.
View the entire list, here.
Please reach out to aman@dashin.in for any feedback or clarifications regarding the content of this article.
