All Shutdown, No relief, Pim's costs, and more...

Family Meal - Friday, November 13th, 2020

Hello Friday,

Per usual, Tuesday's paid edition of Family Meal is copy / pasted below for those of you who didn't get it. (If you want to get Tuesdays' on Tuesdays, subscribe here.)

Not per usual, today's copy/paste is courtesy of new Family Meal sponsor: BentoBox.

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Let’s get to it…

What guests (and mayors) are reading – Almost every open tab I have on this laptop is some city’s variation on “Elected Officials Mull Shutdown,” and then there’s this blunt headline in the NYT: “New York City Must Hit Pause on Indoor Dining.” Editorial Board direct address: “New York residents and officials, it’s time to face some cold, hard facts. The city is on the cusp of its second wave of the coronavirus. As such, restrictions need to be brought back, as economically and socially painful as they might be. Indoor dining at city restaurants should end…

“We saw [Governor Cuomo] take a step in the right direction on Wednesday when he banned private indoor and outdoor gatherings of more than 10 people statewide and said gyms, bars and restaurants with licenses from the State Liquor Authority would need to close by 10 p.m. The rules go into effect on Friday [today]. But that is not nearly enough.”

A quick search for any mention of financial aid in the Op-Ed yields just this one sentence: “And federal lawmakers need to offer workers relief in the form of additional stimulus.” Editorial Board Members, THAT is not nearly enough.

The Relief – Meanwhile, over in the Coronavirus section of that paper, Nicholas Fandos, Emily Cochrane, and Alan Rappeport report, “Top congressional Democrats renewed calls for a sweeping coronavirus relief package on Thursday, insisting that voters had given President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. and his party a mandate to fight the pandemic aggressively… By holding firm to keeping $2.4 trillion in new spending as their starting point, Democrats appeared to be closing the door on the possibility of a year-end compromise with Republicans, who have proposed spending a fraction of that amount.” The starting point on the Republican counterproposal is still only $500B — with no $120B RESTAURANTs Act — though Mitch McConnell did tell reporters, “I do think there needs to be another package.” Top notch thinking.

PS – As negotiations sputter on, the Independent Restaurant Coalition is trying to build support for federal relief beyond its coastal strongholds. Per their latest email, “We are building our network across the country. Restaurants in places like Ohio, Wisconsin, and Nebraska will be hard hit this winter and need to get involved in this fight. Help us encourage them to join us by spreading the word.” Look at me. Spreading the word. Website here.

NB: While their Senate filings show IRC spent a total of $40k with their lobbying firm (Thorn Run Partners) in the first two quarters of this year, I’m still annoyed that nobody from the group will tell me how much money they have raised or what else they are spending it on. And since they’re registered as a Citizens United style 501(c)4, we may also never know who the donors are. In other words, in the laudable service of procuring federal relief for the restaurant industry, Tom Colicchio et al are running a dark money lobbying effort.

That’s politics, baby!

The True Cost – If you, like me, like knowing the numbers, you will greatly appreciate this Pim Techamuanvivit interview with (her friend) Charlotte Druckman in Eater. Sample Q&A: “Do you lose money [on takeout]? Week to week, it’s different, but remember I told you we were $75,000 cash positive when we had to close for COVID? … We got $220,000 in PPP [Paycheck Protection Program loan], and as of last period, I was $300,000 in the hole, so we’ve lost basically $80,000 in the six months that we’ve stayed open, assuming that we qualify for forgiveness for PPP. And doing takeout alone is not going to do it anymore. Because we used to do maybe $15,000 a week from takeout, which is not a lot.” Build costs (Pim says Nari came in at around $5M), cash flow, etc. all right here.

That Delivery $$$ ­– Restaurant Dive’s Julie Littman reports, “During an earnings call on Tuesday, John Zimmer, Lyft co-founder and president, said it has talked with retailers and local businesses about their issues with current delivery models, particularly high commission fees. He said Lyft could create a model where it just fulfills orders without coming in between the consumer and the business [including restaurants].” Zimmer then presumably drew the following equation on his Zoom screen: C2B + B2B + B2C – C2app = fUber.

The End of an Era – In New Orleans, “In the realm of New Orleans cuisine, [Wayne Baquet] has been just as constant a presence, serving as proprietor at a succession of restaurants, a perennial Jazz Fest food vendor and the steward of one of the city’s longest-running Black restaurant family legacies. Now, though, change has come. After months of speculation, Baquet confirmed he will not reopen [his Treme restaurant] Li’l Dizzy‘s and has decided to retire.” Ian McNulty has the details on nola.com.

The Media – Per cities director Missy Frederick, Eater Philly editor “Rachel Vigoda has departed for a new gig at Taste of Home,” so there’s a new job posting up on Vox “for an experienced reporter and editor” to replace her. “This is a part-time, union, Philadelphia based position.” (Side note: I don’t see the Eater NY editor job up there anymore, but no new name on that masthead yet…)

And last but not least – Announcing the very soft launch of the very real Family Meal store! Have a friend who gets way too much attention (are you friends with René?) or way too little (are you friends with almost anyone else?)? Why not surprise them this Christmas with a Food Media Darling mug? Want to let the tech bros at the farmers market know your vegetables also vest? Maybe splurge on your very own Stock Options tote. Or, go all the way and let the world know the truth with a bag that literally says: “Some guy in Hong Kong talks to me twice a week about restaurant news.”

Work in progress, folks. Work in progress. More soon.

And that’s it for today! (But keep scrolling if you missed Tuesday’s.)

I’ll see paying subscribers here Tuesday for next Family Meal, and everyone else in one week.

And don’t forget to follow me on Twitter and Instagram, and send tips and/or some cold, hard facts to andrew@thisfamilymeal.com. If you like Family Meal and want to keep it going, please chip in here. If you got this as a forward, sign up for yourself!

Here begins the copy/paste of the Family Meal that went out Tuesday, November 10th, to paying subscribers. If you’d also like to get Tuesdays’ on Tuesdays…

Reminder: Today’s copy/paste is sponsored by BentoBox.

Pfizer delivers, Broglie out, Sucre back, WWDMD, and more...

Hello Tuesday,

A short one today. I regret to inform you that food media has not only begun its slow descent into intense conversations about basting, but that the usual Thanksgiving content will now also be complimented by endless “Holiday Zoom” tips. Some of you love the former, and that’s fine, but I pray that in the spirit of the season you will join me in hating the latter. Thank you.

Let’s get to it…

The Relief – Not federal monetary relief today, but maybe more permanent relief? A COVID-19 vaccine (eventually)! The NYT’s Carl Zimmer and Katie Thomas have a handy explainer on the big news from Pfizer last night, with 11 FAQs like: “What did these scientists find out?” Answer: “Early analysis suggests the [new Pfizer] vaccine is over 90 percent effective.” And: “Is that a good result?” Answer: “It is.” And: “When will the general public be able to get it?” Answer: “The vaccine could be authorized for certain high-risk populations before the end of the year, but that would only happen if everything goes as planned and there are no unforeseen delays.” (So maybe we’d be on track for some solid distribution in early-mid 2021 either way?)

NB: Last question — “Can we stop wearing masks now?”Answer: “Please don’t.”

The Fallout – “The chairman of the Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas, resigned on Friday, after a week of turmoil at the most elite organization in American wine.” The NYT’s Julia Moskin reports that after her initial expose last week, “On Thursday, as calls mounted for the entire 13-member board to resign, The Times sent questions to the chairman, Devon Broglie, about a woman who said he had an inappropriate sexual relationship with her in 2013, before he became chairman. At the time, she was a junior-level candidate for the master sommelier title and he was her mentor… Mr. Broglie, 46, the top wine buyer for the Whole Foods Market chain, has been chairman since 2018, and was a member of the group’s ethics committee, which handles sexual misconduct claims…. A spokeswoman for the court said Mr. Broglie’s resignation as chairman was unrelated to [the allegations], and was already under discussion when The Times approached the board on Thursday with questions about them. He remains a member of the court.”

The Discourse – Shout out to all the celebrity food folks having a real come to Jesus moment in this post-election quagmire (Note: in this metaphor, the celebrities themselves are Jesus). Danny Meyer got off to a great start by giving his “friends who feel deflated tonight a big virtual hug” on Twitter, leaning into his hospitality-above-all shtick and generating enough backlash that WaPo’s Tim Carman has an entire article today titled, “Danny Meyer wants to bring everyone to the table after a fractious election. Twitter says: Too soon.” Meanwhile, Alton Brown is getting dragged for posting a seemingly pro-Biden (or at least pro election integrity?) tweet that somehow also managed to include a shoutout to the “very fine people on both sides” people. And there are still others (you know your ‘likes’ are public, right?) getting called out left and right (both sides!). Stay safe out there, folks! Where you go one, might not go all!

The Resurrection – Per Clair Lorell in Eater NOLA, “Sucre, New Orleans’s once-popular boutique dessert shop that abruptly closed all of its locations last year, will reopen under new owners, the company announced on Instagram Thursday. According to company records, Sucre’s current owner is Aaron Motwani, known for his fried chicken and daiquiri chain Willie’s Chicken Shack and his family’s ownership of large amounts of French Quarter real estate.” Nola.com’s Ian McNulty says Motwani’s wife Ayesha is running the business, with former Sucre sous Ashley McMillan coming back as exec pastry chef.

Some Sad News – “One of modern San Francisco dining history's most prolific restaurateurs — known for opening some 30 businesses over 50 years, including legacy steakhouse Izzy's and likely the city’s first New Orleans-style spot — has died. Robert Samuel “Sam” DuVall was 80 years old when he died of natural causes on Nov. 1.” Janelle Bitker has a full obit in the SF Chronicle yesterday.

And last but not least – The Beard Awards may have been cancelled, but the Beard Foundation Open for Good Auction is very much on. Those of you shopping for my Christmas presents should get your bids in ASAP on:

The idols — Item 310: A “unique collection of 11 x 16 black and white portraits of David Chang, Dominique Crenn, and Kwame Onwuachi printed and framed.” No bids yet, and the min is only $1500, a small price to pay for conversation pieces. (“Why do you own these pictures?”)

The coaches — Item 106: Non-culinary academic coaching, about which the Beard Foundation assures us: “Unlike the infamous college coaching scandal making headlines recently, the Lakhani Coaching program is legitimate.” Phew.

And, of course, items 221-223: Distillers Select Woodford Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey personally selected by the James Beard Foundation. Pro-tip: You’re going to want to lock down those bottles quick before the Foundation regrets its selections…

And that’s it for today!

I’ll see you here Friday for next Family Meal.

And don’t forget to follow me on Twitter and Instagram, and send tips and/or 11x16 black and white portraits of David Chang to andrew@thisfamilymeal.com. If you like Family Meal and want to keep it going, please chip in here. If you got this as a forward, sign up for yourself!