One week ago, Sam Hendler, co-owner of a restaurant and bar in Framingham, was tallying the toll the coronavirus had taken on his business. Sales were slipping, and like business owners everywhere, he wondered what would happen next.
On Sunday, Gov. Charlie Baker offered a decisive answer. In an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus, Baker ordered all bars and restaurants to stop seating customers and instead provide only take-out options until April 6.
“It stopped some of the uncertainty. There were so many rumors about how things would be dealt with,” Hendler said. “The only silver lining is we know what we’re up against now.”
Hendler’s company, Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers, is one of the largest craft beer producers in the state. For a typical St. Patrick’s Day, his brewery would ship hundreds of kegs of beers to Boston’s Irish bars. But with bar service suspended, those orders never materialized.
“It feels like twice a day we’re making a new business plan,” he said.
A retail area usually devoted to beer sales will be expanded to also accommodate take-out food orders. The goal is to preserve as many of his company’s 150 jobs as possible, but Hendler expected to spend part of St. Patrick’s Day handing out pink slips.
“It’s hard to say how many people will be able to make it to the other side of this, but it won’t be without significant losses,” he said. “There’s a lot of people who’ve been through a lot of stuff with us and we’ve always tried to do everything we can to be there for our employees. It’s definitely a tough feeling, to feel like you’re not in control.”
Massachusetts restaurants and bars employ more than 300,000 people, but that number doesn’t include people whose livelihoods are connected tangentially to the industry.
“Well, it’s been different,” said Joey Abarta of Stoughton, who plays the uilleann pipes, a traditional Irish instrument similar to the bagpipes.
This time of year, he and his wife Jackie O’Riley, an Irish dancer, are usually booked with performances. This year, as the risk of crowds became increasingly clear, bookings slowed and then disappeared. It’s the equivalent of canceling the Christmas shopping season for retailers.
“It’s really a hard time,” Abarta said. “Irish musicians, yeah, it’s a big hit for them in March, but it’s all musicians. There’s so many musicians in Boston, and they can’t play, either.”
Next weekend, the couple had planned to bring their 8-month-old daughter, Edith, along for a performance at a festival in Mississippi.
“We’ve already paid for flights for that and, you know, the festival can’t be expected to really cover all those costs,” said O’Riley. “It’s the same for my dance classes. I’ve had to cancel a bunch of classes, but there’s studio rent that I’ve already paid that I won’t get back. Do I give refunds to my students? Who does this sit with, where does it stop?”
The losses, said Bob Luz, president of the Massachusetts Restaurant Association, will extend beyond this quiet St. Patrick’s Day. The social distancing aimed at slowing the coronavirus means the hospitality industry will miss out on a series of canceled spring traditions including March Madness, the Boston Red Sox' opening day and the Boston Marathon.
Even when restaurants are allowed to resume normal operations, Sam Hendler predicts it will be a slow start-up. The times, he said, are unprecedented.
“A lot of businesses aren’t going to get to the other side of this, so vote with your wallet,” he said. “Vote for the people who you think, when times are good, are supporting your community and are great partners. When times are tough, they’re going to need your support.”
