Cincinnati's restaurateurs are banding together to ask the federal government for hundreds billions of dollars to avoid the end of the industry as they know it.
Britney Ruby Miller, president of the restaurant empire built by her father, Jeff Ruby, said that laying off the organization's 600 employees was the hardest move she's ever hard to make. The move was made necessary by the growing outbreak of COVID-19 and orders in nearly every state where Jeff Ruby Culinary Entertainment has locations – they operate seven restaurants across Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee – banning dine-in service at restaurants.
"It was devastating to me and my family. It's like nothing we could have ever expected," Ruby Miller said. "My No. 1 goal is to fight for my industry and fight for my company because my goal is to welcome back 100% of my employees."
Ruby Miller has assembled a task force of her peers, heavy hitters in the local restaurant industry, names like Jean-Robert de Cavel, David Falk, Daniel Wright, John Lanni, Cristian Pietoso, Dean Gregory, Jean-Francois Flechet, Molly Wellmann and Bob Deck. The group is hosting a news conference Friday afternoon to make a plea to the federal government: restaurants need a $225 billion bailout.
Those peers have struggled as well. The Thunderdome Restaurant Group, which operates 39 restaurant locations, is furloughing its 1,300 employees. Founding brothers Joe and John Lanni, and their business partner Alex Blust, are forgoing their salaries and donating them to a relief fund that offers need-based grants to their workers. Just about every major independent restaurant group in Cincinnati has set up similar funds for their impacted workers.
Nationally, restaurant were projected to bring in $899 billion in sales this year, according to the Restaurant Association. The industry employs 15.6 million people, about 10% of the American workforce. Ruby Miller said that number is probably closer to 20% when you factor in ancillary businesses such as food producers, delivery drivers, logistics companies and more.
President Donald Trump's administration has proposed a $50 billion bailout for the airline industry, which was predicted to be a $138 billion market in 2020, according to industry market research firm IBISWorld.
"Why aren't we first in the pecking order?" Ruby Miller said. "If restaurants do not get grants right now, my prediction is that at least 50% are going to fail."
Ruby Miller, in conjunction with the Ohio Restaurant Association and the national Restaurant Association, is actively lobbying at all levels of government for a bailout of the industry. Of the $225 billion bailout that the Restaurant Association is asking for, $145 billion would go toward grants to act as relief for restaurants that have been forced to close their doors and lay off workers because of the spread of coronavirus.
A good portion of the rest would back business interruption insurance for restaurant, which would help them cover losses in the event of events like the COVID-19 pandemic. Restaurant already have insurance, but many policies did not anticipate or cover loss of business due to global virus outbreak.
"None of us would be this panicked if we had that, but it has to be federally backed," Ruby Miller said. "This is a dire situation for restaurants."
Like many Cincinnati restaurateurs, Jeff Ruby Culinary Entertainment pivoted to curbside carryout after Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine barred dining room service. The high-end steakhouses, with three locations in Cincinnati and restaurants in Nashville, Columbus, Louisville and Lexington, cut back to offering carryout – with a new option for family style meals – at its Columbia Tusculum location, the Precinct, only.
Restaurants across Cincinnati that had initially offered a carryout menu are announcing closings daily. Carryout, Ruby Miller said, wasn't enough to keep all the locations afloat.
"I'm keeping that thing open because of my heart, because of my moral values and social responsibility," she said.