JT’s Bistro in Camp Verde did not used to have a heavy focus on takeout or delivery. Until 2020, the upscale bistro had focused on dining in.
But with the coronavirus pandemic disrupting the plans of all businesses, especially restaurants based on in-person gatherings, food-to-go became much more of a focus. According to John Teah, owner and chef at the JT’s Bistro, the change may last even after the virus is gone.
“I have a lot of customers who think we should [switch]” to to-go permanently, Teah said.
For local restaurants, what they had once hoped would be several weeks of difficulty have morphed into months, and changes such as operating at 50% capacity and personal protective equipment are transitioning from brief bumps along the road to the new normal. Restaurants are adapting to fewer customers and lower revenues for months.
“It’s difficult, but I am trying my best,” Teah said. “Delivery and takeout is what I’m counting on. Unless people stop ordering I think we can make it.”
Initial reopening led to heavy traffic for some restaurants, which restaurateurs say has fallen somewhat in recent weeks compared to the late spring.
“There has been in the last few weeks, a drop off mid-week,” Brenda Clouston, owner of Colt Grille in Cottonwood and president of the Old Town Association, wrote in an email. “Locals have been staying at home more because of the extension of the mask mandate by the local mayor and the governor. It has affected business adversely.”
“We are however, seeing an uptick on the weekends from visitors, and it appears that locals are starting to tiptoe out this week as well, as the numbers descend,” Clouston wrote.
For those who depend on the food service industry for their income, the attitude seems to be to just keep maintaining to the degree they can.
“I definitely feel like we’re relatively stable,” Scott Buckley, owner of the Main Street Cafe in Clarkdale, said. “We went from beginning of March not knowing what was going to happen day-to-day to, ‘Holy moly, we’re going to make it through this.’ It hasn’t been easy with all the changes we have to make — the paper menus and all the extra work we have to do to keep it safe. It’s more work for the same amount of money, but it is what it is. I think we’re better off than most.”
