1/27/2015
By Ivan Pereira
The Big Apple’s eateries may have taken a financial beating during Tuesday’s snowstorm but the New York State Restaurant Association said it found no fault with the city’s “better safe than sorry” approach.
Chris Hickey, the group’s city director, expressed gratitude that Mayor Bill de Blasio’s office, the city’s Office of Emergency Management and sanitation department kept business owners in the loop about transportation closures and coordination efforts.
“We were kept up to date on all recent developments so that we could inform restaurants and help them prepare for the worst,” he said in a statement.
De Blasio warned that delivery bikes were included in the travel ban that took place Monday night and Tuesday morning, forcing several eateries throughout the five boroughs to close because they couldn’t deliver their food. Hickey estimated that its member restaurants lost between $5,000 to $50,000, depending on their size, when delivery stopped during the prime dinner hours.
Nonetheless, Hickey said owners and their customers were well-informed about the situation.
“Many restaurants notified customers via email and social media in advance that they would be closed yesterday and today,” he said.
