Our own Chef Andrew Gruel of the Slapfish Restaurant Group provides another timely and informative “Ask the Chef” segment where Chef Andrew responds to listeners thoughtful inquiries. Chef Andrew is regularly updating us on the impact of the Covid-19 crisis in the hospitality field and what we, as diners, can do to support the very survival of restaurants which is a genuine (and increasingly growing) concern. This week restaurants in Southern California were finally allowed to reopen for outside/patio dining at reduced capacities with all the requisite COVID 19 safety precautions. It’s a welcome start back. We’ll “Ask the Chef.”

Los Angeles County remains the most restrictive with new outside dining prohibitions. There is an odd new requirement on televisions. If a restaurant has a TV monitor (or monitors) in their outside dining area it can’t be on. This is while tables need to be kept 8 feet apart and dining groups are limited to a maximum of 6 guests who must all be from the same household. (How is that even enforced?) The TV restriction apparently doesn’t apply in any other SoCal County that we are aware of.

Chef Andrew updates us on the inspiring progress for the grass-roots, “86 Restaurant Struggle” campaign to benefit out-of-work and struggling restaurant workers. Chef Andrew and his wife, Lauren, have already distributed over $300,000 in small grants to deserving restaurant workers in need. All applications are carefully vetted by the Gruels. The need continues…

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