Long Island Restaurant Owners Prepare For Outdoor Dining

FARMINGDALE, NY— Long Island restaurant owners prepare to open for Phase 2 outdoor dining while juggling the demands of business, and a plethora of sometimes confusing government directives. Last Friday in Farmingdale, a mixup of messaging led to a snafu where outdoor dining was shut down by Nassau County.

Ben Lo Manto, owner of Vespa Italian Kitchen & Bar and Harleys American Grille in Farmingdale, explains that the mixup was an honest mistake between Farmingdale Mayor Ralph Ekstrand, the restaurants owners in Farmingdale Village, and Nassau County Executive Laura Curran whose approval process included a caveat about the tables being supplied by the village. Everyone, he said, was just excited to get started with outdoor dining.

Governer Cuomo announced Wednesday that outdoor dining will be added to Phase 2 of reopening, with Long Island on track for Phase 2 next Wednesday. With the green light, restaurant owners like Lo Manto are beginning to imagine the logistics of opening safely and profitably. But the partial reopening can't come too soon for businesses that have been operating at often 80% reduced business for months.

"Every month, every week makes a difference," Lo Manto told Patch. "We are trying to keep up on our bills and prepare for the future when we may have reduced business."

The outdoor dining comes with a host of protocol and rules, from distancing between tables, a reservations-only policy to reduce mass congregating, and masks for staffers. But Lo Manto says it will be an organic, learn-as-you-go process.

Changing and complex rules pose a challenge to restaurant owners, and Lo Manto points out he doesn't want to be in the position of accidentally being out of compliance based on a lack of information. And how the rules will be enforced in a real world situation, he said, will require adaptability and new ways of operating.

"You can put as many rules in place as you want but we will need to be monitoring what goes on, making sure our guests feel safe and confident to come and the staff members feel safe."

Based on the amount of Long Islanders who showed up on Farmingdale's Main St. last week to enjoy dining out for the first time since March—Newsday reported there were 1,500 who showed up—there is plenty of pent-up customer demand.