Relief passed, Chang reviewed, Shamers shamed, and more...
Family Meal - Tuesday, December 22nd, 2020
Hello Tuesday,
For those just joining us, Tuesday Family Meals are usually for paying subscribers only (though I then copy/paste them into Fridays’ so that folks who can’t chip in don’t miss out). Today, Family Meal goes out to everyone because the next two Fridays are Christmas and New Years Day, and I’m taking those off.
I may take Tuesday, Jan 29 off too, but will play that by ear, and keep you posted on Twitter.
If you want to get Tuesdays’ on Tuesdays in 2021…
Let’s get to it…
The Relief – Welp... They finally passed a new federal stimulus bill. Woohoo? Aid to restaurants appears to be solely in the form of a second round of PPP, and per Eater’s Ryan Sutton, “To apply for this new ‘second draw’ round of paycheck loans, businesses will now have to show they have fewer than 300 employees (down from 500) and that revenues have declined 25 percent over the previous year. Loans will again be capped at 2.5 times monthly payroll costs — or 3.5 times payroll for bars and restaurants — but with a new limit of $2 million. And to avoid a scenario where Taco Bell or McDonald’s franchises snap up all the money, publicly traded companies won’t be eligible…
“To qualify for full forgiveness, meaning that the loan effectively becomes a grant, restaurants and other businesses will have to meet strict qualifications, showing that they used at least 60 percent of the proceeds on payroll while maintaining their staffing levels. The rest of the funds can be used on rent, utilities, protective equipment, or building outdoor dining spaces, or interest on mortgage payments… The good news is that if you can’t hire back folks because they don’t want to work, or if you can prove that you had to reduce staffing because of COVID-19 closures, your loans will still convert into grants.”
NB: I’m no expert on Congressional documents, but it also seems like language on page 2118 of the bill(!) mandates that at least $15B of PPP loans go through small scale lenders, which should help some of the hospitality applicants who couldn’t get Mr. JP Morgan on the line last time.
Also included was President Trump’s 100% tax deduction for business meals, and NRA rep Sean Kennedy told the Washington Post’s Tim Carman that a “huge victory for small businesses” is the inclusion of “tax deductions on business expenses covered by PPP money.”
P.S. While I wait to get the full story on the lobbying efforts involved here, Carman’s roundup seems to imply that once the Independent Restaurant Coalition’s RESTAURANTS Act was seen as non-viable, the NRA was in the driver’s seat…
Reacting to questions about the new bill on Twitter, IRC’s Tom Colicchio said simply, “McConnell, Rubio, and McCarthy screwed the Restaurant industry.” And the IRC posted video of Senator Chuck Schumer saying the RESTAURANTS Act is not dead yet, but… we’ll talk about that next year.
Meanwhile, Alinea’s Nick Kokonas says federal relief or not (Alinea took $1.1M in the first round of PPP per Eater), there is a silent minority of pandemic winners out there: “Frankly, those who adapted quickly and are thriving are hesitant to show the way. I can see businesses in the restaurant sector that are actually thriving, but given the carnage they smartly stay hidden. The real leaders will be from this group of people. They will emerge.”
Show yourselves, you successful cowards!
The Pit – Eater published a new review of Dave Chang’s memoir from Hannah Selinger, a former Momofuku employee, but despite the initial headline, “Dave Chang’s Memoir Fails to Account for the Trauma He Caused Me,” on first read this feels more like a longform apology / personal growth analysis than a series of specific accusations. Selinger, who says, “In all my years of restaurant work, I had never seen anything like the roiling, red-faced, screaming, pulsing, wrath-filled man that was David Chang,” does try to add some details she feels are missing from Chang’s vague confessions of anger in the book — she “vividly remember the day that a line cook, who could not have been more than 22, was brought to tears by Dave’s rage for cooking what was deemed a subpar family meal: ‘I will scalp you,’ Dave screamed. ‘I will murder your fucking family!’” — but by the end she basically says that while she has mixed feelings about Chang, the full story is yet to be heard: “I… believe that he owes a tithe beyond an apology. (Releasing every former employee from any nondisclosure agreement that prevents them from talking about what they experienced at Momofuku might be a start.)”
But beyond the very personal repercussions for those involved, my big question — which is partly at the heart of Selinger’s essay — is has Chang gotten out in front of all that already? Does his constant public self-flagellation, discussion of his anger issues, and word that he’s working on it make him immune from anything else that may come to light? Or maybe he’s not just immune, but still genuinely worthy of everything yet to come (the media company, more restaurants, CPG brands, etc.)?
I see a lot of people on Twitter asking why some in food / food media aren’t retweeting or commenting on this, and implying that they’re “afraid” of Chang. I don’t think it’s that they’re all afraid. I think at least a few of them would answer yes to that last question. You?
The Bibimbap – Meanwhile, in Illinois, “A fellow Chicago chef is once again accusing Top Chef alum Stephanie Izard of irresponsible cultural appropriation after she posted a recipe for bibimbap earlier this week on Instagram.” Details from Ashok Selvam in Eater. I’ve gotten some emails about some of Izard’s other appropriation issues before, but when I asked a local industry person if this one would stick, they said no, because, “Chicago doesn’t get it.”
The Callout – And in the SF Chronicle, critic Soleil Ho has a little bit of shame for the shamers, taking a more nuanced look at Instagram callout accounts like the “86’d lists” that share unvetted accounts of alleged industry misdeeds: “Though shame can be the stick that prompts individuals to change their behavior, many of these anonymous callouts come off as more punitive than constructive. All we have to go on are one-sided accusations and hurt feelings — a gossip rag with a veneer of radical politics.” Kudos to Soleil for taking this on, and navigating it well… BUT that said, if you guys have any sweet, sweet dirt on Soleil, definitely hit me up on the insta: #radicalgossip.
The 180 – New to me: Washington City Paper’s Laura Hayes reported last week that back in August, “Chef José Andrés joined other New York restaurant owners in signing his name to a letter urging Governor Andrew Cuomo to eliminate the tipped minimum wage, along with other policies they feel would help the hospitality industry and its workers ‘survive this crisis and thrive.’… The chef and humanitarian’s signature feels a little like an about face.” That’s putting it lightly. Andrés was one of the main voices fighting against Washington DC’s ballot initiative to eliminate the tip credit in 2018, eventually helping to overturn the will of the voters via pressure on City Council. “‘Life is complicated and nuances are important,’ Andrés says.”
From what I can tell the nuance here is: NYC doesn’t compete for labor or customers (it’s NYC!), but in DC and elsewhere, the next county is always calling. Fair?
Some Sad News – “Henry Haller, the longest-serving White House executive chef in the history of the residence, who planned and executed countless extravagant banquets… and more than 250 state dinners for five presidents, died Nov. 7… He was 97.” Olesia Plokhii has his obituary in the Washington Post.
And per the Houston Chronicle’s Greg Morago, “Ann Criswell, who shaped the Houston Chronicle’s food and home cooking coverage for more than three decades and championed Houston’s dining scene as it grew to prominence, died Dec. 15. She was 87. Criswell died of complications from COVID-19, which she contracted while a resident of an assisted living home in College Station.”
And last but not least – I’m going to try to share more photos and illustrations from the year in food media in this Twitter thread later — and please add your own if you have them — but meantime, check out the year in review page photographer Gary He put together here. Gary gave me permission to use the pics here, so I leave you with one of my favorite shots of the year, his early pandemic look at the placeholder diners of Superiority Burger, which I have titled: “They Moved.”
And that’s it for today.
I’ll see you here sometime soon (TBD) for next Family Meal.
And don’t forget to follow me on Twitter and Instagram, and send tips and/or a gossip rag with a veneer of radical politics 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!
P.S. - A bit of a crunch to get this one sent (the gift guide had to be postponed, I’m sorry), but before the year is out, I just want to say: Thank you all so much for a tremendous year for this niche little newsletter. Many of you have chipped in to keep it going, and many more of you have shared it, sent tips, and kept in touch. Even with the incredible interruptions 2020 threw our way, we met back here almost 90 times this year. Here’s to another year, a better year, and you! Thank you!
Happy New Year and thank you for such an entertaining newsletter. One of my lockdown favorite reads. I've worked in the restaurant industry for many years, just closed my little cafe in October, so I've really enjoyed your insight (and gossip). :)