Restaurant owners bracing for next round of COVID-19 impacts as cases surge

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — The owner of The Oven tells Channel 11 he expects things to change again soon as the number of positive cases of COVID-19 continue to surge.

“We’ve seen this before. It will transition to curbside, delivery, takeout, and the eat-in will basically be cut in half from what it used to be,” owner James Samreny said.

When COVID-19 first hit the restaurant industry, owners everywhere were scrambling to figure out what to do. Amid a fall resurgence, cases are skyrocketing, setting new records nearly every day.

“You worry it’s going to get politicized. People are going to pick their favorites. They’re going to pick their favorite scientists to follow and they’re going to disenfranchise the rest of us and that’s generally how it goes,” Samreny said. “You’re dealing in the court of public opinion half the time, and dealing in the reality of keeping people healthy the other half of the time.”

Samreny said he’s spent thousands of dollars in training and upgrades to ensure that if and when this next wave hit, his business would be ready.

“You get creative and you don’t quit and you keep a positive mindset,” he said.

“First off, I can’t operate in fear. I just can’t operate in fear. Secondly, I think any government agency needs to understand the fiscal impact is huge. I’m sitting on probably $40,000 worth of beef. Not just this, but beef I’ve aged for 30 days,” Napa Prime owner Glenn Hawley said.

Just a mile-and-a-half up the road, Hawley said he’s already seeing decreases in business. He said it’s the cooler weather and people concerned about the recent spike in COVID-19 cases that are causing the loss.

Other restaurant owners told Channel 11 they hope this latest wave was attributed to Halloween and that it will subside soon.

Local mom says porch pirate stole expensive Christmas gift meant for daughters

Cox Media Group