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COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:14 am
by KCPowercat
Confirmed list:
- Webster House announced 4/20
- Beignet announced 4/12
- Nick & Jake's South Plaza location announced on 4/8
- Parkway Social announced 4/23
- Jacobson
- t.loft on the Plaza announced 5/26
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:33 am
by brewcrew1000
I don't know if Webster house closed cause of the virus. The place was never that busy and the owners had loads of money to take loses
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:41 am
by DaveKCMO
brewcrew1000 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:33 am
I don't know if Webster house closed cause of the virus. The place was never that busy and the owners had loads of money to take loses
I'm going to say that if someone closed because of COVID and never reopened we should track them here.
Adding Bar Louie.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:42 am
by KCPowercat
"We just felt that after the request that restaurants and bars closed, we just could not sustain our present operation and not knowing we could truly open. There are just so many unknowns. It's a great culture and so many people that work there," founder Shirley Bush Helzberg said.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:42 am
by KCPowercat
DaveKCMO wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:41 am
brewcrew1000 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:33 am
I don't know if Webster house closed cause of the virus. The place was never that busy and the owners had loads of money to take loses
I'm going to say that if someone closed because of COVID and never reopened we should track them here.
Adding Bar Louie.
Which location? P&L one closed before.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:00 am
by DaveKCMO
KCPowercat wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:42 am
DaveKCMO wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:41 am
brewcrew1000 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:33 am
I don't know if Webster house closed cause of the virus. The place was never that busy and the owners had loads of money to take loses
I'm going to say that if someone closed because of COVID and never reopened we should track them here.
Adding Bar Louie.
Which location? P&L one closed before.
P&L closed Jan. 24 because the chain went bankrupt, so yeah before the order or even when restaurants started switching to carry out.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:07 am
by snigglefritz
DaveKCMO wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:00 am
KCPowercat wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:42 am
DaveKCMO wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:41 am
I'm going to say that if someone closed because of COVID and never reopened we should track them here.
Adding Bar Louie.
Which location? P&L one closed before.
P&L closed Jan. 24 because the chain went bankrupt, so yeah before the order or even when restaurants started switching to carry out.
Replace Bar Louie with Flying Saucer and THEN you have a COVID casualty.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:57 am
by KCPowercat
snigglefritz wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:07 am
DaveKCMO wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:00 am
KCPowercat wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:42 am
Which location? P&L one closed before.
P&L closed Jan. 24 because the chain went bankrupt, so yeah before the order or even when restaurants started switching to carry out.
Replace Bar Louie with Flying Saucer and THEN you have a COVID casualty.
I debated adding rumored ones but figured be better just go with confirmed closures.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 11:38 am
by earthling
Local casualty: Likely 10-15% of workforce w/out a job.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 11:42 am
by earthling
Local casualty: Likely 10-15% of workforce w/out a job due to CV.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 12:10 pm
by taxi
This may end up being the longest thread on this forum.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 1:54 pm
by Highlander
snigglefritz wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:07 am
DaveKCMO wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:00 am
KCPowercat wrote: ↑Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:42 am
Which location? P&L one closed before.
P&L closed Jan. 24 because the chain went bankrupt, so yeah before the order or even when restaurants started switching to carry out.
Replace Bar Louie with Flying Saucer and THEN you have a COVID casualty.
Is Flying Saucer out of business? I enjoyed that place. It was always packed every time I was there but it's been a couple of years since I've visited.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 3:28 pm
by swid
It still did good business on event nights, but it had become noticeably less busy at other times. While all other Flying Saucer locations (other than the one inside DFW) are operated by their corporate parent, KC’s became a franchise operated by Cordish last fall. There are many more beer options for craft beer in the metro now than there was in 2008, and the KC location’s significant management turnover over the past several years didn’t help, either.
All that being said, it was still one of the top 2-3 craft beer bars in the metro when it closed; to preempt Kevin’s inevitable rebuttal, listicles that say that several breweries or Up-Down were better place for beer in KC aren’t applicable to what I’m referring to, as those things aren’t beer bars.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Mon May 11, 2020 8:59 am
by KCPowercat
Added Jacobson to the list. Gotten independent confirmation that the Parkway restaurant people bought it up and are renovating it. There is definitely a lot of work going on at the site.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Mon May 11, 2020 12:09 pm
by WSPanic
KCPowercat wrote: ↑Mon May 11, 2020 8:59 am
Added Jacobson to the list. Gotten independent confirmation that the Parkway restaurant people bought it up and are renovating it. There is definitely a lot of work going on at the site.
I loved the vibe, set up and cocktails at Jacobson, but I never liked the food. Sorry to see them go, but also encouraged it's such a quick turnaround.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Mon May 11, 2020 1:25 pm
by beautyfromashes
^same
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Mon May 11, 2020 1:50 pm
by taxi
I eat out a lot (or at least, used to P.C.) and am an optimist, small business owner and risk taker, but there are a ton of reasons why there are going to be a lot of casualties. I hope I'm wrong.
Unless testing becomes easier to get and preferably free for small businesses, I can't see how any restaurant is gonna make it. Most were operating on small margins and had little in reserves. I've spoken to owners who are doing OK with take out, but they are still losing money and working longer and harder than ever. If they have been able to hold out this long, opening back up for business is gonna be next to impossible. With reduced occupancy loads but enough staff to operate, most will lose even more money. Some do not have a layout that affords social distancing, even with a redesign. If a staff member comes down with symptoms of COVID-19, without quick and reliable available testing, they will all have to quarantine, which means shut down. Then there are liability issues with both staff and customers. A lot of staff don't want to work, since they are making more on unemployment. This will be the end for most small, locally owned restaurants and especially fine dining. I imagine there will be a rebound in a couple years, but I bet very few will survive over the next 6 months.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Mon May 11, 2020 4:23 pm
by flyingember
What's at risk is experience dining and alcohol-centric dining. To quote the movie Office Space "People can get a cheeseburger anywhere, okay? They come to Chotchkie's for the atmosphere and the attitude."
When you can't get the experience it just becomes another restaurant to order takeout from. So places have to stand on their merits on the food.
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Mon May 11, 2020 5:09 pm
by brewcrew1000
I went brewery emperial this past weekend and they were letting people drink and eat outside. We were kind of surprised they allowed people to drink outside. I think places with lots of outdoor seating will have a big advantage for a year or 2
Re: COVID-19 Casualties
Posted: Mon May 11, 2020 5:13 pm
by dukuboy1
restaurants are just about the riskiest small businesses. So many fail and for multiple reasons. They are extremely hard work and for most with very little pay off. You do it because you love it, and sometimes you get lucky. I don't see the industry just going away, especially for local places and smaller concepts. Covid-19 has an impact but it will not define for years of all small local places disappearing.
Honestly we will see people returning to dining and living their life again. Plus as advances in treatment get better and we get a real understanding of the true infection and mortality rates it changes the narrative. I mean we know smoking causes cancer, it says so on the pack, we restrict who can buy it, yet every year people new start smoking and those who are smokers continue. People will want to live their lives and we will adjust as a society to this new threat, learn how to contain it & live with it. Hopefully we can cure it, but if not we'll learn to live with it effectively as we do with literally hundreds of other viruses that can result in death for certain people. I'm not trying to downplay anything or lessen the importance but "nature finds a way" and man will tame this monster as it has done since we have been around as a species.