Independent Restaurant Coalition

The Independent Restaurant Coalition is a US trade group formed during the COVID-19 pandemic by independent restaurateurs and chefs. During the pandemic the group lobbied local, state and federal governments for relief after their businesses were closed by government mandates to slow the spread of the virus. Their aim was to mitigate the impact of the closings on independent restaurants.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] Multiple prominent chefs and restaurateurs formed the leadership team.

Independent Restaurant Coalition
Formation2020 (2020)
FounderIndependent restaurateurs and chefs
TypeTrade group
PurposeLobbying local, state and federal governments on behalf of independent restaurants
Location
Websitehttps://www.saverestaurants.com/

Background

According to the IRC, independent restaurants represented 4% of the US GDP and employed 11 million workers at the beginning of 2020.[8] The US has 500,000 independently-operated restaurants.[1]

History

The coalition got its start during the pandemic after state and local governments started shutting down restaurants and bars to slow the spread of the virus.[9] SoHo restaurateur Camilla Marcus "saw a press conference from the White House that mentioned bailouts for industries that don’t employ one percent of what we do as an industry," which she found "infuriating".[9] She contacted other restaurateurs and chefs.[9]

In mid-March, US President Trump held a conference call with restaurant industry representatives, but included only representatives of large national chains, causing further concern among the independents.[1] Later Trump downplayed a report by the National Restaurant Association which estimated that as many as 11% of independents could close down permanently within 30 days, saying "they’ll all come back in one form of another. Might be a different restaurant. But it’s going to be a great business for a lot of people.[1] IRC co-founder Tom Colicchio described the two incidents as "a call to action" for independents.[1]

By March 30 the group had hired a lobbyist.[10]

In addition to Colicchio and Marcus the leadership team included Suzanne Goin, Mike Lata, Patrick Phelan, Adam Saper, Michael Shemtov, Nancy Silverton, Frank Stitt, Caroline Styne, Sam Kass, Kevin Boehm, Donnie Madia, Erika Polmar, Naomi Pomeroy, Andrew Carmellini, Andrew Zimmern, Ashley Christenson, Marcus Samuelsson, Will Guidara, Steven Satterfield, Sean Brock, Bobby Stuckey, Kwame Onwuachi, Nick Kokonas, and José Andrés.[8]

Mission

The initial goal was to secure financial and legislative protections for restaurants and their workers.[9] After the federal government passed the Cares Act the group said the bill's primary provision, the Paycheck Protection Program, did not help independent restaurateurs.[1] At the end of April the group called for a $120 billion fund for small and independent restaurateurs, asking congress to exclude publicly-traded restaurants and large restaurant chains from accessing the fund.[11][12][13][14]

References
  1. Carman, Tim (2020-04-07). "The Cares Act was supposed to help save small businesses, but independent restaurants remain in dire straits". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  2. Zhang, Jenny G. (2020-04-06). "Independent Chefs and Restaurateurs Call on Congress for Better Stimulus Terms". Eater. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  3. Cobe, Patricia (6 April 2020). "Independent restaurant group asks Congress for more help to save restaurants". Restaurant Business. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  4. "Top U.S. chefs seek restaurant help from Congress". finance.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  5. "Independent Restaurant Coalition asks Congress to extend Paycheck Protection Program". Restaurant Dive. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  6. "Independent Restaurant Coalition drafts letter to congress for help during COVID-19 pandemic". fox43.com. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  7. Fuhrmeister, Chris (27 March 2020). "Atlanta chef spearheading new restaurant lobbying group". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  8. "Independent Restaurant Coalition". Save Restaurants. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  9. Greenwald, Kitty (2020-03-25). "To Save Their Industry, Restaurant Owners Get Organized". Grub Street. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  10. "Camilla Marcus: Too small to fail, too big to ignore". Take Out Only. 30 March 2020. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
  11. "April 29 – IRC Stabilization Fund Letter". Independent Restaurant Coalition | Save Local Restaurants Affected by COVID. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  12. "Chefs Call for $120 Billion Restaurant Stabilization Fund". Food & Wine. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  13. Axelrod, Tal (2020-04-29). "Restaurant coalition urges Congress to create $120 billion stabilization fund". TheHill. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  14. Nurin, Tara. "Independent Restaurant Owners Call On Congress For Dedicated COVID-19 Aid". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
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