A blacklist ordered by the government for New York City restaurants that have been left behind because their liquor bills threaten evil plans to reopen this week, The Post has learned.
The so-called Phase Two Reopening for Big Apple on Monday allowed 26,000 restaurants and city bars to resume dining outside after spending months under locking of coronaviruses which had restricted them from being taken out and shipping.
But when thirsty customers start filling the sidewalk tables, cash-strapped restaurant owners will save every last penny to keep beer, cocktails and rosé flowing.
That’s because state regulations dictate that restaurants whose monthly liquor bills are not paid in full cannot use credit or borrow funds to buy alcohol. This tight cash payment condition is very unlikely to be fulfilled for most restaurants closed in the city, according to industry officials.
The Tribeca Terroir – a neat wine and tapas place that holds 65 people in the room – ordered around $ 30,000 of liquor in late February, a few weeks before it was closed by a lockout ordered by Governor Andrew Cuomo on March 16. To add insult to injury, owner Paul Greico noted the wine list was not ready for the upcoming season change.
“I don’t have rosé,” Grieco regretted. “Now suddenly that makes up 50 percent of your wine sales, and I need to buy roses and I don’t have money to do that.”
The “Delinquent List” of the State Liquor Agency, which forces restaurant owners who have not paid their monthly liquor bills in full to pay for liquor orders, usually snare less than 5 percent of the city’s restaurants at normal times, according to Robert Bookman, an expert alcohol regulation which acts as an adviser to the New York City Hospitality Alliance.
The SLA cannot provide the right number of businesses currently on its delinquency list, but Bookman estimates that it is now likely to swallow a “large majority” of New York City restaurants and bars.
“Theoretically, you can open a place and in a few days they run out of the alcohol they have for March,” Bookman said. “This can really have a negative impact on opening and their ability to move again and bring in more income.”
Darryl and Melissa Burnette are among the lucky ones who can refill before reopening. They used part of a $ 132,000 Small Business Administration loan to get their restaurant, Belle Harlem, off the naughty list last week.
But the list kept them from closing because it prevented them from ordering wine for sale. That means they cannot take advantage of the soaring demand for liquor from locked up consumers.
“We will be able to do well enough if we can increase our stock,” Darryl Burnette told The Post.
The New York State Restaurant Association has asked the SLA to relax regulations for at least 30 days to help restaurants get back up, said Chief Executive Melissa Fleischut. But state officials state that it is unfair for wholesalers, he said.
“I tried to explain to them that wholesalers will not get their money,” Fleischut told The Post. “[Restaurant owners] can’t pay. “
Wholesalers cannot give restaurants a break on their own because state law states that they report rogue customers. The law also contains rules governing prices and credit that would prevent wholesalers and restaurants from working on payment plans, according to SLA spokesman William Crowley.
Crowley did not explain why the SLA did not relax the rules. But he said officials had taken other steps to help restaurants and bars during the crisis – such as letting them sell cocktails to go and extending the license-renewal-fee deadline.
“We understand the difficulties these businesses face and will continue to support them as the country’s economy continues to reopen,” Crowley said in an email.
Terroir Tribeca’s Grieco said he had “a few shekels at the bank” to buy rosels worth $ 1,000 before he reopened on Wednesday. But with the reopening fee and about $ 200,000 in outstanding bills, he estimates he will not be able to pay his old liquor bill for another six to eight weeks.
He blamed inflexible state laws, which prevented him from making agreements with liquor wholesalers as he could with food vendors or their owners.
“Everybody is willing to have a conversation and I can’t be with that group of vendors, and your back is pressed against the wall,” Grieco said.