To eat out or not to eat out? That is the question right now as Gov Walz green-lighted restaurants serving indoors but at 50 percent capacity. If it were up to Minnesota's chef-owners, they'd say "come on in!" WCCO Radio's Roshini Rajkumar has spoken with several of the Twin Cities' top chef-owners in good times and bad, both on her show, REAL Talk with Roshini, and on Real Leaders with Roshini podcast.
As they waited to re-open indoor services, she spoke with all of them about how COVID-19 and the riots following the death of George Floyd affected their businesses.
She most recently spoke with Chef David Fhima at the time he found out only patio service was allowed. The owner of Fhima's and chef for the Timberwolves and Lynx was heartbroken about the limitations. And now, he can't re-open on June 10 because of the damage to his restaurant during the violence set back his restaurant at least a week from re-opening.
While we wait for Fhimas to re-open, check out his Episode of Real Leaders with Roshini podcast in 2019, long before anyone could imagine what 2020 would bring.
Chef Justin Sutherland is an Iron Chef winner who started 2020 with nine restaurant concepts in both stand-alone restaurants and food court options, plus more things in the works. Roshini spoke with him on Real Leaders with Roshini podcast when he was literally on top of the world:
On June 7, they reconnected on REAL Talk with Roshini, and Justin shared how he had to close some restaurants, including Handsome Hog in St Paul, move some restaurants, and are on hold with what to do across some of their brands. At the same time, his desire to lift the conversation around racial equality has put him on the streets in peaceful protest with hopes of inspiring people to communicate across differences. He counts Chef Fhima as one of his mentors. Both have worked to lift up the hospitality industry by using their own funds and raising funds for those who lost jobs.
Chef Gavin Kaysen is no stranger to wanting to serve others. He took on the role as spokesperson at the beginning of the global pandemic. By stepping up as an employer to many at Spoon and Stable, Bellecour, and Demi through paying their medical benefits when they were out of work, he inspired other restaurants to step-up their games. He also made impressions on the public about the plight of the restaurant industry. Check out what he had to say on Real Leaders with Roshini about six weeks into the shutdown:
More recently on NewsTalk 830 WCCO, Chef Kaysen told Roshini he has no plans to close any of his restaurants and says all restaurants that can afford to stay open will be cleaner than ever. Kaysen's restaurants won't re-open for indoor service on June 10 but do plan to open soon. He says, "For the last three months, we have had to pivot, adapt, and change business models to reflect what was thrown at us." Now he says they'll open in stages, "likely starting with Bellecour, then moving to Demi, and lastly Spoon."