Letter to the Editor

An Open Letter to Gov. Baker, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, and All Mass. Representatives and Senators

Dear Editor,

We’re a group of owners and managers of restaurants and related companies. We want to reopen restaurants, safely and legally, on May 19, 2020, provided that virus hospitalizations aren’t rising. Thirty days after that, we want to open at full capacity. Towns and cities would be allowed to slow this timetable if local virus hospitalizations are rising now or in the future.

However, these localities would announce an alternative time frame immediately so that we and our hard-working employees can plan accordingly.

Hospitality provides 300,000 jobs in our state, 150,000 were laid off, and more jobs are lost every day. 60,000 jobs may never return. We can operate safer than a Walmart, Target, Home Depot, or a supermarket, which host many more customers per day, are not usually as clean, and six feet distance is close to impossible. We’re one of the cleanest, most regulated, industries. Unlike the owners and presidents of most of these multibillion-dollar, multinational companies, we live here and work in our stores, so our safety measures impact us and our families. Cleaning and sanitation for the safety of customers and employees has been the most crucial component of our industry for decades; it’s what we do first and foremost.

To open legally and safely, we will:

• Reconfigure our patios, dining rooms, and bars to meet the standard of six feet social distancing

• Sanitize the facilities

• Create marked lines for waiting outside, eliminating inside waiting

• Sanitize menus after each use or replace with disposable and online menus

• Meet National Restaurant Association reopening standards

• Test employee temperatures

• Create protocol to shut down and sanitize if an employee tests positive

• Block half the restroom facilities (if room holds more than one customer)

• Wear masks

• Require customers to wear masks when not seated

• Post pictures and videos on social media to show that we’re meeting standards

No other organization or individual represents us. If you need one representative to coordinate this effort, such as a virtual conference call or a detailed written plan, we’ve chosen Dave Andelman of Phantom Gourmet and Mendon Twin Drive-In. He’s an attorney, MBA, and small business owner. He’s not in a political party or any business or political organization.

He’s not being paid for this responsibility. He’s a small business owner who represents restaurants with passion and knowledge.

Restaurants are one of the top few generators of jobs, tax revenue, and culture in Massachusetts. Hard-working industry employees have been denied the right to make a living, and many will lose their job permanently. To create a safe, legal framework to reopen, we deserve a seat at the table, guidelines and a timetable, now.

Respectfully,

MA Restaurant and Jobs Group

Rudy Alterio Stanney’s of Holbrook, Inc.

Jenifer Apazidis The Red Raven Restaurant

Jerry Azzarone Brew City

Michael Barrett. Barett’s Ale House

Mary Barrett Costello The Charlie Horse, Abington Ale House, Tirrell Room, Weston Hall,

Jones River Trading

Michael Bartosiewicz Bushel n Peck

Tanya Bergquost. Industry Chef

Marty Bloom Mission Oak, Mission on the Bay, Burro Bar

Bob Boudreau Anchor Pub & Grill

Cabby Brini Cabby Shack

Bruce Brockway Industry General Manager

Mike and Linda Bullard Doggz & Hoggz

Damian Cahill Damian’s Restaurant & Bar

Greg Califano Volturno

George Carey Finz, Sea Level

Chris Carpenter Faneek’s Coney Island

Anthony Caturano Prezza, Tonno, Blue Ox

Jordan Chanot Speedwell Tavern

Judy Chen The China

Jay ho Chung Seoul Kitchen

Jessica Coelho Tia Maria’s European Cafe

Tom Coleman LIV Restaurant

Michael Columbia Brelundi

Greg Coughlin Longcross Bar + Kitchen, Blackmoor Bar + Kitchen

Mikey Crawford The Druid

Anowsh Dadgar Insurance Broker

Tyler DeScenza. DeScenza Diamonds

Thomas Devlin Superior Dining Group

Jim Dietz II Loft, Joe Fish, Dos Lobos

Jim Dietz Sr. Joe Fish, The Loft, Dos Lobos

Karin DiNapoli Cupcake City LLC

Dermot Doran The Mad Hatter Restaurant

Lisa Dowd Cheesey Street Grill

Dave Doyle Cowbells Cafe

Marjorie Drucker New England Soup Factory & Modern Rotisserie

Jay Duffley Executive Chef

Nate Elliott The Cellar Tavern

Domenic Fabiano Arturo’s

Jacqueline Field Amazing Pizza

David Fields Wormtown

Kirk FitzGerald The Bog Pub

Johnny Fortin Toast Office, Grateful Dead Diner, Rox Diner

Seana R. Gaherin Dunn-Gaherin’s

Ed Gillooly Baystate Wine & Spirits

Ted Gavrielidis Ted’s Place

Patrick Gibbons Alumni Sports Cafe

Chandra Gouldrup The Farmer’s Daughter

John Grasso Halfway Café, The Brook

Ellie Greenberg Alice in the Village

Geraldo Guimaraes Old Town Cafe

Aziz Elias Habr To BeiruT

CJ Haddad Haddad’s Ocean Cafe

Matthew Hanley J.P. Ryans Tavern

Todd Harrington Anzio’s

Adam Hicks Depot Street Tavern, Maddi’s Cookery & TapHouse

Ashley Holt Hidden Pig

Brian Houlihan Trident Galley & Raw Bar, Tinker’s Son, The Parrot, Galley Kitchen & Raw

Bar, Bia Bistro

Erik and Kevin Hynes Stockholders, Bay Point, 42 North, Precinct 10

Robert and Donna Jenks The Midway- Dedham

Sharon Kamens Industry Executive

Dan Keefe Summer Shanty

Leo Keka Alba

Jon Kesaris Themis, The Marsh

Tom Kirwan Finnegan’s Wake

Emanuel Leandro Leandro’s Italian Restaurant & Tavern

Neil Levine Maguires Bar & Grill

Dermot Loftus The Oysterman, The Anchor

Steve Londregan Chuck’s Steakhouse

Bill Lynch Lynch’s Tavern

Perry Makarios Spot

Sera Manzi Essex Street Grill

Nick Marshall Restaurant Professional

John and Kristin Martin Mia Regazza

John Mauro Elms Café, Simply Delicious Catering

Tom Medaglia Medaglia & Murphy CPA

Carolyn Metivier Mike’s Restaurant

Mario Michalakis Amelia’s, Sofia Italian Steakhouse

Stephanie Miller Breakfast at Stephanie’s

Jim Moran Malcolm & Parsons Insurance

Bootsy Mullin Town Tavern

Bob Murphy Portside Tavern

Howard Newburg Newburg & Co

Kathleen O’Donovan Abington Depot

Austin O’Malley Hancock Tavern

Jason O’Toole Pizza Barbone

Thomas Oliveri Civic Kitchen, Peppercorn’s, Prezo

Bryan Palazzolo Mystic Station

Nick Palermo Greyhound Tavern

Ron Patuto Lobster Express

Steven Peljovich Michael’s Deli

John Perette Johnny Konos Bar & Grill

Jimmy Pietrosanto Industry General Manager

Jason Pound Finesse Hospitality Services

Jim Quirk New England Steak and Seafood

Charlie Redd Dragon Pizza

Richard Rosen McGuiggans Pub

Todd Rotundo Salernos

Harry & Elizabeth Sarras Bates Bar & Grill

Andrea Schnell Sorelle Bar & Grill

Chris Schweiger The Oysterman, The Anchor

Julie and Bud Siciliano Heart & Soul Cafe, Ipswich

Robert Simonelli The Landing Restaurant

Kristin Smith Finnegan’s Wake

Mark Standish The Bowery

Spiros Stogiannis Easy Pie

Robert Sweeney The Banner

Lou Tarentino EMOS Recycling

Paul Turano Cook

Nick Venezia The Little Store

Wemerson Vieira Welly’s Restaurant

Michael and Susan and Emily Walker Chestnut Street Grille

Marc Warner Epic Oyster

Brian and Arlene Wilkie Warren’s Place

Dennis Wilson Central Public House

Yasmine Zakhary Yaz’s Place

Ania Zaroda & Michael Gurevich Mike & Patty’s & Hot Box

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.