The ups and downs of the pandemic have left many businesses floundering but with restrictions loosened several area restaurants are eager to again welcome patrons.

By Mary O’KEEFE

On Friday, Jan. 29 Los Angeles County restaurants – once again – were allowed to open for outside dining.

“It’s been a roller coaster,” said Alissa Hwang, owner of Alissa’s Ocean View Bar and Grill in Montrose.

“We are open, and it’s a roller coaster that we got on,” added Jim Collins, owner of Town Kitchen and Grill in Montrose. “It left the station and we are still on it.”

Restaurants were closed, along with almost all other businesses throughout LA County, during the Safer at Home restrictions imposed on March 19, 2020. In July 2020 restaurants were allowed to open for outdoor dining only. Many cities created areas for outdoor service, including Montrose/Glendale, which took away parking spaces and installed K-rails to create outdoor dining areas. These “parklets” remain very popular and many restaurant owners bought heaters and other equipment as they prepared for winter weather. Then on Nov. 24, 2020 the LA Board of Supervisors voted to close outdoor dining effective Nov. 25 in a 3-to-2 vote. Fifth District Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who represents the Crescenta Valley area, voted against the closures.

Now restaurants are open once again for outdoor dining and, judging by the crowds in Montrose on Friday night, people are very pleased.

“I have been fascinated because when outdoor dining is operating Montrose is significantly busier,” Collins said.

Collins said his restaurant has done okay during the pandemic with strong support from loyal customers, whether during outdoor dining or delivery and pickup only, but that’s not to say everything is as it was prior to the pandemic.

“It’s hard. Restaurants have borne the brunt of a lot of the health care orders with the openings and closings, having spent significant amounts of money to comply with the rules then to have them change them,” he said. “I don’t blame the officials for the challenges we face. I think everyone is doing their best; I wouldn’t want their job.”

“Yes, closing and opening is so much harder,” Hwang agreed.

Alissa’s Ocean View Bar and Grill did not stay open after the outdoor dining shutdown because delivery services were taking such a large percentage for their service it wasn’t financially possible for the restaurant to remain open.

“The concerns [of COVID-19] are always there,” Hwang said.

She added that protocols followed by the restaurants come specifically from the Public Health Dept. She didn’t feel the spike in COVID numbers was due to outdoor dining because most restaurants strictly followed the regulations.

“We regulate people who are [dining at] restaurants,” she said.

They limit the number of people at a table to four, even if there are larger parties that come in.

“I had someone [have a party] of 12 people. I said fine but we will give you [three] tables,” she said.

She added it is difficult, as a business owner, to say that Public Health is targeting her business.

“I love my restaurant,” she said. “But I have lost several people to COVID.”

She understands these restrictions are in line with following the science, and Public Health is doing what it needs to keep people safe.

She does feel in some way that dining at a restaurant is safer than going to a friend’s house for dinner, even if it is in the backyard. She knows the strict protocols that are followed by restaurant workers and has confidence in those protocols.

Hwang is happy that restaurants are once again open for outdoor dining.

“Socializing is how we get through the day, and none of us have had that outlet,” she said.

“People want to be anywhere but home,” Collins said. “Outdoor dining brings an energy.”

He said he has spoken with merchants in stores around him who say they reap the benefit of those coming to Montrose for outdoor dining. More people are walking around Montrose than ever before.

“It is a little bit of forced rediscover,” he added.

Collins said he has seen that some of his staff members who do not need the job as much as others because they have second jobs step back to give hours to those who need them. He also noted that although business has been steady he is still down about 50% from his pre-pandemic numbers.

Both restaurant owners say they are grateful to their customers, new ones who are just discovering them and longtime supporters as well.

“The public has been great and incredibly supportive. If we were any place but Montrose we may not have been able to stay open,” Collins said. “The community up here is so supportive. We felt carried by them a lot through this and are grateful to be able to continue to stay open.”

Alissa’s Ocean View Bar and Grill, 3826 Ocean View Blvd., has open air patio dining from Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday brunch is from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Town Kitchen and Grill, 2276 Honolulu Ave., is open from 5 p.m. to around 8:30 p.m. every day (the time of closure often depends on the customers).

Side note: In addition to the challenges it is already facing, the staff at Alissa’s Ocean View Bar and Grill is grieving the loss of one of their managers who was in a fatal motorcycle accident on Thanksgiving morning. Enrique Bolanos had been with the staff the day before when they shared the food that was left due to the unexpected closure of the restaurant and outdoor dining. Owner Alissa Hwang wanted the staff to take the food home since she was not certain how long the restaurant would be closed.

Bolanos loved to ride his motorcycle, and the staff continues to mourn his passing.