New York bar and restaurant owners face being arrested if they break the city’s strict lockdown rules and open their doors to customers, as the industry has gone into meltdown amid efforts to tackle the spread of coronavirus.
More than 150,000 people across the city face an uncertain future as their workplaces shut their doors Monday night and threw their livelihoods into jeopardy.
Some establishments including famous New York eateries Gramercy Tavern and Union Square Cafe have promised to keep paying staff and to foot medical bills for workers struck down by the deadly virus.
But many hospitality workers won’t be so lucky and now face fears over how they will make rent and survive with no income for an indefinite time.
A bar sits closed in the early evening in Brooklyn after a decree that all bars and restaurants shutdown by 8pm in New York City
New York bar and restaurant owners face being arrested if they break the city’s strict lockdown rules and open their doors to customers
More than 150,000 people across the city face an uncertain future as their workplaces shut their doors Monday night and threw their livelihoods into jeopardy
A cafe in New York sits empty on Monday ahead of the lockdown across the city
Duplex in Greenwich Village: The final hours before the government mandate to shut down
The city that never sleeps turned into a ghost town on Monday night as all cafe, bars, restaurants and movie theaters shuttered from 8pm, after officials ordered the ban in a desperate effort to slow the spread of coronavirus.
Under New York City’s Mayor Bill de Blasio executive order, the normally lively bars and restaurants are now restricted to take-out and delivery only.
The mayor said New York will close its bars and restaurants for ‘as long as necessary’ along with casinos, gyms and movie theaters as part of an effort with neighboring states Connecticut and New Jersey to stop the spread of coronavirus.
Restaurants, pizzerias and even Starbucks stores started placing signs on the front of their doors on Monday to inform customers that they would only be open for ‘grab-and-go’ options.
Chairs hang stacked on empty tables at a closed restaurant Monday in the Big Apple as the city that never sleeps shuts its doors
A pizza slice restaurant was deserted Monday night with chairs stacked on the empty tables
A sign is seen on the window at McSorley’s Old Ale House, New York City’s oldest Irish saloon, showing its final hours before it has been forced to close its doors indefinitely
Barman Hayden O’Leary, 27, cleans up after closing at McSorley’s Old Ale House Monday night: The mayor said New York will close its bars and restaurants for ‘as long as necessary’ along with casinos, gyms and movie theaters as part of an effort with neighboring states Connecticut and New Jersey to stop the spread of coronavirus
A worker sweeps the floor in the historic ale house: Restaurants, pizzerias and bars started placing signs on the front of their doors on Monday to inform customers that they would only be open for ‘grab-and-go’ options
Restaurant and bar owners have been warned that if they flout the rules and continue to stay open during the shutdown they could be arrested.
Patrons and operators caught not complying with the ban could face a disorderly conduct summons and, in more severe cases, be arrested, an advisory to NYPD told CNN.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had previously called on law enforcement to come down hard on any establishments not following the rules when the state first ordered that bars and restaurants could remain open but that they must operate at just 50 percent capacity.
The governor said if sites failed to follow the rules ‘they were violating the law. if they’re doing that, then the NYPD should come in and shut them down,’ he said last week.
While the city takes the drastic steps to slow the spread of the deadly disease, the move may have left more than 150,000 workers across the city struggling for survival.
A deli owner finishes closing up shop on Monday: The city turned into a ghost town on Monday night as all cafe, bars, restaurants and movie theaters shuttered from 8pm, after officials ordered the ban in a desperate effort to slow the spread of coronavirus
Times Square lay quiet: Under New York City’s Mayor Bill de Blasio executive order, the normally lively bars and restaurants are now restricted to take-out and delivery only
A nearly empty Katz’s Deli restaurant – the famous deli – on the Lower East Side of Manhattan
About 154,400 people work in the city’s bars, restaurants, cafes and food trucks, taking home about $4.7 billion in wages every year, according to a 2019 report from The Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment.
Many workers in the industry are paid by the hour, and so lost hours means no take-home pay, meaning vast swathes of households will now be left struggling to pay rent and bills.
Several of New York City’s leading restaurants and bars have pledged to do all they can to support vulnerable staff during this turbulent time.
The Union Square Hospitality Group, which includes famous New York eateries including Gramercy Tavern and Union Square Cafe, has promised to keep paying all staff scheduled to work.
The Union Square Hospitality Group, which includes famous New York eateries including Gramercy Tavern (above) and Union Square Cafe, has promised to keep paying all staff scheduled to work while its doors are shut
Danny Meyer, the group’s founder and chief executive, promised to keep paying staff salaries as well as medical insurance for the next month and costs associated with treatment of any staff struck down by the deadly virus
Danny Meyer, the group’s founder and chief executive, announced that all 19 of the group’s restaurants in the city closed after lunch on Friday ahead of the city’s shutdown and would remain closed for the foreseeable future.
Meyer promised to keep paying staff salaries as well as medical insurance for the next month and costs associated with treatment of any staff struck down by the deadly virus.
‘Despite our closures and the total loss of our revenues, we will continue to pay employees scheduled to work through the pay-week,’ Meyer said in a statement.
‘We will cover employee premium contributions for medical insurance for those who are currently enrolled, for the next month. We will continue to cover costs associated with the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of coronavirus for any colleagues who don’t have health insurance.’
Meyer also recognized the toll the crisis may take on the mental health of staff and said support would be available: ‘Finally, we are providing free mental health support for employees who need help.’
Aurelio Cuatlacuatl (left) and manager George Bololis fulfill takeaway orders at Chelsea Square Restaurant on Tuesday. While it may be quiet in the dining area, the restaurant is busy with takeout and delivery orders
Chelsea Square Restaurant manager George Bololis hands long-time customer Charlie Batista an order of corned beef and cabbage at Chelsea Square Restaurant
As business as usual is no longer an option, local residents have been ramping up their purchases of delivery and takeout food and drink
Pictures obtained by DailyMail.com showed the dine-in area of Chelsea local favorite Chelsea Square Restaurant deserted on Tuesday and a sign on the window advertising take out and delivery
Tables and chairs lie empty in the Italian restaurant but it was seen still going strong with take-out orders
He has called on the public to support hospitality staff and the industry by buying gift cards for local businesses to use ‘when the situation normalizes’ and by using the delivery and takeout offerings from restaurants that remain open.
Michelin star Korean steakhouse Cote NYC has also pledged to support staff during what is now an unprecedented time for the industry.
Proprietor Simon Kim announced the highly-decorated eatery will be offering stipends for part-time and full-time staff at the restaurant.
As business as usual is no longer an option, local residents across New York have been ramping up their purchases of delivery and takeout food and drink.
Pictures obtained by DailyMail.com showed the dine-in area of Chelsea local favorite Chelsea Square Restaurant deserted on Tuesday.
Tables and chairs lie empty in the Italian restaurant but it was seen still going strong with take-out orders.
A member of the kitchen staff takes a break in the now empty dining area of the restaurant on Tuesday
Cleaning supplies are at the ready at Chelsea Square Restaurant in Manhattan
Batista (right), a regular at the Chelsea restaurant for more than 40 years and a patron of the former bar that was converted into a restaurant, has switched his lunch to takeout so as not to miss out on food from his favorite spot – and to help the restaurant survive through the crisis
While dine-in options are not available, the restaurant is still busy with loyal customers ordering take-out
Tourists Janna Mueller (center) and Jonas Stapper (right) of Berlin, Germany, pick up an order at Chelsea Square Restaurant on Tuesday
Chelsea Square Restaurant manager George Bololis was seen handing long-time customer Charlie Batista an order of corned beef and cabbage, as the restaurant complies with the take-out and delivery only rules.
Batista, a regular at the Chelsea restaurant for more than 40 years and a patron of the former bar that was converted into a restaurant, has switched his lunch to takeout so as not to miss out on food from his favorite spot – and to help the restaurant survive through the crisis.
The outbreak across the city saw the St Patrick’s Day parade canceled for the first time in more than 250 years.
Bars that would have recorded one of their busiest days were deserted as people stayed home and rules meant they could only take in half as many customers as usual.
Vast swathes of households will now be left struggling to pay rent and bills
Signs are plastered all over the doors to bars and restaurants Monday night: About 154,400 people work in the city’s bars, restaurants, cafes and food trucks, taking home about $4.7 billion in wages every year
Mesa Coyoacan in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, offers takeout dinner and drinks in efforts to maintain some business
Several of New York City’s leading restaurants and bars are pledging to do all they can to support vulnerable staff during this turbulent time
Orla Sweeney, manager of Connolly’s Irish pub in New York City, expected St. Patrick’s Day to once again be one of her bar’s most profitable days of the year.
Instead, the pub near Times Square was shuttered on Tuesday, like hundreds of thousands of dining establishments.
Sweeney broke the news to her employees on Monday after Cuomo ordered the closure, and they broke down in tears.
She said: ‘They were like, ”Well when can I come back to work?” And I’m like, I’m not really sure. In this industry, they live week to week, day to day, and right now they have nothing.’
Even prior to the closures, restaurants had been struggling to keep their doors open after sales were down up to 70 percent in the first week of March, according to the New York State Restaurant Association.
New York’s largest Chinese restaurant Jing Fong closed its doors after 48 years of service on Thursday when the 50 percent capacity rules came into force.
Claudia Leo, the restaurant’s marketing director, told the NY Post that its Elizabeth Street site was already struggling to draw in crowds amid the mass panic over coronavirus.
The ban on the large group gatherings last week had been the final nail in the coffin for the 800-seat restaurant.
‘We were going back and forth on what to do all day,’ Leo said, adding that they considered ‘shrinking’ the seating to less than half its full capacity.
Just last week, de Blasio had urged New Yorkers to continue to eat at restaurants, and emphasized that the virus isn’t transmitted through food and drinks.
Many other US states across the US also began shutting down their bars, restaurants, movie theaters and gyms.
Monday also marked the first day of school closures for New York City, which educates 1.1 million students. The closure will last until April 20.
Cuomo and de Blasio had previously pushed back against the possibility of closing schools in America’s largest city because so many students rely on schools to have a healthy meal and closures would also affect the ability of working parents to stay in their jobs.
The escalating measures came as the number of confirmed cases in the US surged passed 4,700 with 93 deaths as of Tuesday morning.