How cold is too cold? Pandemic's winter months pose hurdle for outdoor dining
By
Lauren Fox, AccuWeather staff writer
D.C. restaurant owners are purchasing additional heating equipment to cater to customers who prefer to dine outdoors this winter.
Social distancing guidelines have been pushing people out of cramped restaurant dining rooms to tables set up outdoors across the United States, but as cold months loom over many regions of the country, restaurant owners are stuck with a difficult question: How cold is too cold for outdoor dining?
In New York City, the outdoor dining program was initially set to end on Oct. 31. However, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio made the decision that outdoor dining in the city will remain indefinitely.
On Sept. 30, indoor dining in the city was allowed to resume in the city at 25% capacity, Forbes reported. Some restaurant owners, though, have weighed in that one-quarter capacity will not yield enough business to keep them afloat. And some patrons told AccuWeather that they still do not feel comfortable dining in an enclosed environment.
“Anything to stay alive is helpful, but 25% does nothing for us,” Mike Giammarino, manager and president of Lombardi’s, recently told The Guardian. “It’s not going to stop restaurants closing. Once the weather changes and the little bit of spark that came with outdoor dining fades and there aren’t so many people walking around, you’re going to see a lot more restaurants fail.”
People walk by outdoor plastic dining bubbles on Fulton Market in Chicago, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2020. Colder temperatures are providing a new challenge for restaurants during the coronavirus pandemic, but there's a solution being developed in Fulton Market. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Sadia Schwinn, who lives in Washington, D.C., told AccuWeather National Reporter Emmy Victor she intends to eat only at restaurants that offer outdoor accommodations this year.
"I think I am going to only want to continue dining outdoors," Schwinn said. "And I am going to prioritize restaurants that have heating lamps outside."
Similarly, 76-year-old Jimmy Wright told The Guardian he is going to “eat outside until I freeze.”
“I’m totally uncomfortable with being in an enclosed space with people without a mask," he explained. What's your limit? Vote in our poll below.
Boston, in contrast to New York, has committed to outdoor dining only until Dec. 1; however, the brisk weather in the city may actually push people inside sooner than officials anticipate. A record-breaking first snowfall in Boston occurred on Oct. 30, when the city recorded 4.3 inches of snow, shattering the previous daily record of 0.6 of an inch and even the monthly record of 1.1 inches, according to the National Weather Service.
"I was so sad," Alex Morris, of the Barking Crab, lamented to NBC 10 Boston after the city picked up the early snowfall. "It’s too early."
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"We’ve made some kind of weather-proofing adjustments and kind of battening it down to keep people toasty warm and extend the summer vibe until as long as we can," Morris said.
Areas across New England were impacted by the rare snowstorm, with some places reporting 4.5 inches to 6.5 inches across northeastern Connecticut, northern Rhode Island and central and eastern Massachusetts. The snowy conditions were rare for the month of October, and with outdoor dining becoming prevalent, it raised another question: How much longer can restaurants offer outdoor services?
Washington, D.C., may be farther south than Boston and New York City, but with the pandemic leading many patrons to prefer outdoor seating, the city is now giving grants to restaurant owners to help cover the costs of winterizing outdoor spaces.
Tiki TNT in Washington, D.C., is tenting up for the winter after receiving a grant from the city; however, owner Todd Thrasher worries the tent won't be enough to drive business back to his business. (Photo/Emmy Victor)
The grants can be used to purchase tents, heaters, propane gas, additional furniture, lighting and signs for advertising.
“Businesses have been reimagining their outdoor spaces to increase seating capacity, and we have been working throughout the pandemic to cut red tape and provide funding to support this hard-hit industry,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Todd Thrasher, owner of Tiki TNT in Washington, D.C., received a $6,000 grant from the city, which he said he will be using along with money from his own pocket to prepare his outdoor dining patio for the winter months to come.
"We bought some heaters downstairs, some tents for the winter," Thrasher told AccuWeather National Reporter Emmy Victor. "I'm worried though. Even though we're tenting, we're getting the enclosure up, people might be scared to sit in those."
Todd Thrasher, owner of Tiki TNT in Washington, D.C., told AccuWeather's Emmy Victor that he bought tents and heaters for his restaurant to continue outdoor dinging through the winter. (AccuWeather / Emmy Victor)
Dacha Beer Garden is one of the few locations closer to downtown that has an outdoor patio, and its owner already had some equipment to prepare for the cold weather.
"We actually have one of the best heaters available, and we've had it for many years," owner Dmitri Chekaldin told Victor, adding that the business is mainly concerned with windy and cold weather conditions as the season progresses.
"We're going to do our best to protect ourselves and our customers as the inclement weather moves in," Chekaldin said.
Datcha Beer Garden in Washington, D.C., was already prepared for outdoor dining with heaters set to warm its outdoor patio during the colder months. (AccuWeather / Emmy Victor)
Even before the harshest weather conditions settle in, typically bustling areas are already feeling the changes wrought by the pandemic. Suzy Changar from the Hudson Square Business Improvement District located in the center of the West Village, Soho and Tribeca in Manhattan, told AccuWeather's Dexter Henry that the district has experienced a much different scene since the pandemic began, and after-work crowds that typically pack into popular bars and restaurants are now nowhere in sight.
"I think what we are all thinking is: 'How do we navigate the cold weather? What do we do? How do we entice people to still want to come and eat outside?' They need the outdoor seats," Changar said.
One restaurant in the district, Gitano's, was able to avoid the learning curve of transitioning to outdoor dining, since its operators, in a stroke of uncanny prescience, were already prepared for it.
With 24,000-square-feet of outdoor dining space and heaters, tents and wind-resistant glass already on deck, the restaurant was all set for outdoor dining to become the new normal.
"They had such an amazing business plan, and it was pre-pandemic so they were almost built strangely enough for a pandemic," Changar said.
Not all restaurants, however, had the supplies for outdoor dining on hand. Because of that, many business owners needed to do some renovating to outdoor spaces to be more winter weather-ready. The Hudson Square Business Improvement District created parklets in the area to help out the local restaurants.
"We are having more sturdy tent structures built and then we will also be incorporating an assortment of heaters," Nicole Rudolph from Local and Vine said. "There's different requirements as to what can be on the sidewalks versus the parklets."
Dan Munger, who works as director of business development for DMC Facility Services throughout New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, said his company has seen an uptick in restaurants requesting heater rentals.
Likewise, the online furniture company Wayfair reported a dramatic jump in people searching for patio heaters this year, Fox Business reported.
“Electric heat lamps are incredibly expensive. We’re all working on negative margins to begin with. I’m not concerned with availability; I’m more concerned about viability,” Jeffrey Bank, CEO of Alicart Restaurant Group in New York, said.
People in New York City's borough of Brooklyn dine outdoors at a restaurant in early October. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
According to Hakan Swahn, owner of Aquavit in New York City’s Midtown neighborhood, space heaters are not even on the table as an option for many restaurants.
“The city does not allow electricity to be connected to outdoor dining in a privately-owned public plaza, so heat lamps are not an option for us,” Swahn said.
Despite the addition of tents and heaters made to Local and Vine, Rudolph is not convinced that outdoor dining is a perfect replacement for indoor dining.
"The tents will help. The heaters will help, but it won't be as comfortable as being indoors," Rudolph said.
Additional reporting by Emmy Victor and Dexter Henry.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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News / Business
How cold is too cold? Pandemic's winter months pose hurdle for outdoor dining
By Lauren Fox, AccuWeather staff writer
D.C. restaurant owners are purchasing additional heating equipment to cater to customers who prefer to dine outdoors this winter.
Social distancing guidelines have been pushing people out of cramped restaurant dining rooms to tables set up outdoors across the United States, but as cold months loom over many regions of the country, restaurant owners are stuck with a difficult question: How cold is too cold for outdoor dining?
In New York City, the outdoor dining program was initially set to end on Oct. 31. However, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio made the decision that outdoor dining in the city will remain indefinitely.
On Sept. 30, indoor dining in the city was allowed to resume in the city at 25% capacity, Forbes reported. Some restaurant owners, though, have weighed in that one-quarter capacity will not yield enough business to keep them afloat. And some patrons told AccuWeather that they still do not feel comfortable dining in an enclosed environment.
“Anything to stay alive is helpful, but 25% does nothing for us,” Mike Giammarino, manager and president of Lombardi’s, recently told The Guardian. “It’s not going to stop restaurants closing. Once the weather changes and the little bit of spark that came with outdoor dining fades and there aren’t so many people walking around, you’re going to see a lot more restaurants fail.”
People walk by outdoor plastic dining bubbles on Fulton Market in Chicago, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2020. Colder temperatures are providing a new challenge for restaurants during the coronavirus pandemic, but there's a solution being developed in Fulton Market. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Sadia Schwinn, who lives in Washington, D.C., told AccuWeather National Reporter Emmy Victor she intends to eat only at restaurants that offer outdoor accommodations this year.
"I think I am going to only want to continue dining outdoors," Schwinn said. "And I am going to prioritize restaurants that have heating lamps outside."
Similarly, 76-year-old Jimmy Wright told The Guardian he is going to “eat outside until I freeze.”
“I’m totally uncomfortable with being in an enclosed space with people without a mask," he explained. What's your limit? Vote in our poll below.
Boston, in contrast to New York, has committed to outdoor dining only until Dec. 1; however, the brisk weather in the city may actually push people inside sooner than officials anticipate. A record-breaking first snowfall in Boston occurred on Oct. 30, when the city recorded 4.3 inches of snow, shattering the previous daily record of 0.6 of an inch and even the monthly record of 1.1 inches, according to the National Weather Service.
"I was so sad," Alex Morris, of the Barking Crab, lamented to NBC 10 Boston after the city picked up the early snowfall. "It’s too early."
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
"We’ve made some kind of weather-proofing adjustments and kind of battening it down to keep people toasty warm and extend the summer vibe until as long as we can," Morris said.
Areas across New England were impacted by the rare snowstorm, with some places reporting 4.5 inches to 6.5 inches across northeastern Connecticut, northern Rhode Island and central and eastern Massachusetts. The snowy conditions were rare for the month of October, and with outdoor dining becoming prevalent, it raised another question: How much longer can restaurants offer outdoor services?
Washington, D.C., may be farther south than Boston and New York City, but with the pandemic leading many patrons to prefer outdoor seating, the city is now giving grants to restaurant owners to help cover the costs of winterizing outdoor spaces.
Tiki TNT in Washington, D.C., is tenting up for the winter after receiving a grant from the city; however, owner Todd Thrasher worries the tent won't be enough to drive business back to his business. (Photo/Emmy Victor)
The grants can be used to purchase tents, heaters, propane gas, additional furniture, lighting and signs for advertising.
“Businesses have been reimagining their outdoor spaces to increase seating capacity, and we have been working throughout the pandemic to cut red tape and provide funding to support this hard-hit industry,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Todd Thrasher, owner of Tiki TNT in Washington, D.C., received a $6,000 grant from the city, which he said he will be using along with money from his own pocket to prepare his outdoor dining patio for the winter months to come.
"We bought some heaters downstairs, some tents for the winter," Thrasher told AccuWeather National Reporter Emmy Victor. "I'm worried though. Even though we're tenting, we're getting the enclosure up, people might be scared to sit in those."
Todd Thrasher, owner of Tiki TNT in Washington, D.C., told AccuWeather's Emmy Victor that he bought tents and heaters for his restaurant to continue outdoor dinging through the winter. (AccuWeather / Emmy Victor)
Dacha Beer Garden is one of the few locations closer to downtown that has an outdoor patio, and its owner already had some equipment to prepare for the cold weather.
"We actually have one of the best heaters available, and we've had it for many years," owner Dmitri Chekaldin told Victor, adding that the business is mainly concerned with windy and cold weather conditions as the season progresses.
"We're going to do our best to protect ourselves and our customers as the inclement weather moves in," Chekaldin said.
Datcha Beer Garden in Washington, D.C., was already prepared for outdoor dining with heaters set to warm its outdoor patio during the colder months. (AccuWeather / Emmy Victor)
Even before the harshest weather conditions settle in, typically bustling areas are already feeling the changes wrought by the pandemic. Suzy Changar from the Hudson Square Business Improvement District located in the center of the West Village, Soho and Tribeca in Manhattan, told AccuWeather's Dexter Henry that the district has experienced a much different scene since the pandemic began, and after-work crowds that typically pack into popular bars and restaurants are now nowhere in sight.
"I think what we are all thinking is: 'How do we navigate the cold weather? What do we do? How do we entice people to still want to come and eat outside?' They need the outdoor seats," Changar said.
One restaurant in the district, Gitano's, was able to avoid the learning curve of transitioning to outdoor dining, since its operators, in a stroke of uncanny prescience, were already prepared for it.
With 24,000-square-feet of outdoor dining space and heaters, tents and wind-resistant glass already on deck, the restaurant was all set for outdoor dining to become the new normal.
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"They had such an amazing business plan, and it was pre-pandemic so they were almost built strangely enough for a pandemic," Changar said.
Not all restaurants, however, had the supplies for outdoor dining on hand. Because of that, many business owners needed to do some renovating to outdoor spaces to be more winter weather-ready. The Hudson Square Business Improvement District created parklets in the area to help out the local restaurants.
"We are having more sturdy tent structures built and then we will also be incorporating an assortment of heaters," Nicole Rudolph from Local and Vine said. "There's different requirements as to what can be on the sidewalks versus the parklets."
Dan Munger, who works as director of business development for DMC Facility Services throughout New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, said his company has seen an uptick in restaurants requesting heater rentals.
Likewise, the online furniture company Wayfair reported a dramatic jump in people searching for patio heaters this year, Fox Business reported.
“Electric heat lamps are incredibly expensive. We’re all working on negative margins to begin with. I’m not concerned with availability; I’m more concerned about viability,” Jeffrey Bank, CEO of Alicart Restaurant Group in New York, said.
People in New York City's borough of Brooklyn dine outdoors at a restaurant in early October. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
According to Hakan Swahn, owner of Aquavit in New York City’s Midtown neighborhood, space heaters are not even on the table as an option for many restaurants.
“The city does not allow electricity to be connected to outdoor dining in a privately-owned public plaza, so heat lamps are not an option for us,” Swahn said.
Despite the addition of tents and heaters made to Local and Vine, Rudolph is not convinced that outdoor dining is a perfect replacement for indoor dining.
"The tents will help. The heaters will help, but it won't be as comfortable as being indoors," Rudolph said.
Additional reporting by Emmy Victor and Dexter Henry.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo