New York City’s emergency outdoor dining scene is in a bit of a pickle right now. Countless restaurants are just beginning to understand new rules and facing permit backlogs. Diners are increasingly frustrated by the lack of available seating, prompting some to voice their concerns about the challenges of finding outdoor dining options. As the pandemic spring wears on, it has turned into an increasingly uncomfortable moment for restaurant operators and diners alike.
For Josh Trill, a 27-year-old insurance employee who lives on the Upper East Side, that was a huge win. He promptly reeled in an open air terrace table at Sojourn Social. He admits this hasn’t been the experience for everyone. In a post on his blog Underground Econ, he expressed his disappointment with the about face. Then, we could walk anywhere, he continued. Now, I just have to Google to find places that have outdoor seating. At this stage, a lot of times I just end up getting take-out and going back to the park.
The restrictions have hit many establishments hard. Rosanna Scotto’s Al Fresco by Scotto featured a 40 seat lemon garden – as in full trees! Yet this year, the restaurant has been reduced to only four outdoor tables for two – if folks even want to sit down. It’s looking forward to complete approval for its modified plan, which will let it seat just 12 customers at a time. This cut has sent millions of grateful, eager diners home — still yearning for the plentiful, lively outdoor dining scene they once knew.
Enrico Proietti, the owner of Bella Blu on the Upper East Side, has voiced these fears. He pointed out that diners have consistently told him of their annoyance for the wait for seats. They all seem to be requesting outdoor dining reservations. I can’t stop having to say no to them. As Proietti said, “it’s not rocket science.” Yet, his restaurant now has to navigate a series of new regulations that make expanding or enclosing new outdoor seating impossible.
The picture painted at this hearing before the City Council was largely a rosy one. They have set goals to relax the new ordinances and decrease costs for outdoor dining permits. There are still about 2,600 restaurant applications waiting in line for outdoor dining permits. Instead, they just added about 1,800 temporary sidewalk installations that are still living under active review. So far only 82 restaurants have received final approval— 45 for sidewalk dining and 37 for roadway setups.
Roadway Cafes co-owner Max Crespo called it a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” scenario for restaurateurs. He said navigating the state SLA and the various competing interests on community boards is no easy feat. Simultaneously, the overhead of running a business compounds the overwhelm.
Mara Davis, United States Department of Transportation (DOT) Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy and Planning. She highlighted the agency’s efforts to address the applications backlog. By the time the DOT realized its backlog at the end of this past winter, it was too late. To clear the backlog, they started issuing conditional approvals,” she recounted. Davis conceded that the very long delays have made it difficult for restaurants to procure or even design the structures they need to build outdoor dining. He lamented, “Since it took such a long time, some restaurants may not have engineered or ordered any tables like that.”
Proietti’s frustrations are an experience that restaurateurs across the country are beginning to share when approvals come at the 11th hour. He continued, “We’re all ready to start erecting our buildings, they were originally due to start issuing permits in April, now it appears we won’t see them till June and everyone will have gone to the Hamptons by then!
With more diners looking for outdoor options than ever, it’s unclear how much longer these hurdles last. The pressure is mounting on city officials to expedite the approval process and help restore vibrant outdoor dining across New York City.
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