Name: San Francisco’s indoor dining ban hits Indian restaurants hard ahead of Diwali
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San Francisco’s indoor dining ban hits Indian restaurants hard ahead of Diwali

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This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateSan Francisco told after Friday night’s service — and the timing couldn’t be worse for the city’s Indian restaurants. Saturday marks the start of Diwali, the five-day Hindu festival of lights that’s India’s most important holiday and one of the busiest times of year for Indian restaurants.These restaurants had already created elaborate Diwali menus, bought special ingredients, planned for extra staffing and booked reservations. The owners expected a chance — especially on Saturday night — to make up for some lost revenue during a brutal year. But now they’re worried about wasted food, cutting employees’ hours and the future of their restaurants.“It seems like there’s one thing after another that you’re constantly having to solve, which just makes everything so complicated. Staffing, controlling costs, revenue projections,” said Hetal Shah, owner of high-end Indian restaurant August 1 Five. “Just when we thought we sort of know what business is going to look like, this gets thrown our way.”Shah said Diwali typically brings in as many diners as New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. This year, the restaurant offered a $75 three-course menu with a trio of appetizers, entree options such as pistachio-crusted lamb chops, honey-fig-cardamom ice cream and a rosé cocktail.With the end of indoor dining, she’s had to close the books and figure out if she can move indoor reservations outside since the restaurant can sit 37 people indoors and roughly the same number outdoors — all the while suspecting that many people will instead opt to celebrate at home where it’s warm and not subject to rain. The restaurant has a roof over its parklet but also sidewalk seats not under cover.San Francisco officials warned that if steps aren’t taken to reduce indoor activities, coronavirus cases could get out of control and overwhelm hospitals. Since early October, cases have spiked by 250%. Ultimately, Shah agrees it’s wise to shut down indoor dining, but it’s a complex situation that she wishes she had more time to plan for.“My big thing is it’s only fair to give restaurants at least a full week of notice,” she said. “If it was another big festival or celebration like Mother’s Day, would (city officials) have been more considerate?”It’s a similar story at contemporary Indian restaurant Rooh, which had reservations booked for a special four-course menu across indoor and outdoor set-ups.“We had to call many people to cancel their reservations,” co-founder Anu Bhambri said by email. “This will be a big impact on us this year. People are still calling in and asking for reservations but we are limited in our seating capabilities now.”Some people who booked indoor dining tables weren’t interested in ordering takeout, either, said Rupam Bhagat, who was just starting to promote his Mission District restaurant Ritu Indian Soul Food’s Diwali offerings this week and had some reservations. Unlike August 1 Five, Ritu doesn’t have any outdoor seating to fall back on.“Usually we get a lot of dine-in rather than takeout for that holiday,” he said. “We won’t do even 10% of what we did last year.”If not enough customers order the Diwali meals for takeout, Bhagat said he’ll have to figure out ways to use the Diwali ingredients he ordered — dried fruit and nuts for dessert, plus lots of cream and paneer — for specials throughout the week.Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.The loss of the holiday puts restaurants in a precarious situation for the winter, according to owners.The only reason Ritu is still open is because of Bhagat’s desire to keep staff employed and Ritu’s unusually supportive landlord, he said. At the Amber India restaurants, business had been gradually picking up since the San Francisco location reopened last month. Now, owner Vijay Bist said it feels like the light at the end of the tunnel is gone.He hopes the diners who made reservations for Diwali will be willing to sit outdoors for the special meal and boxes of intricate, delicate sweets known as mithai, but he’s not sure. On Thursday he was trying to secure tents in case of rain.“We had hired people back again. We’ll have to let them go or reduce hours,” Bist said. “It’s becoming impossible to survive now.”More for youJanelle Bitker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: Twitter:Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateSan Francisco told after Friday night’s service — and the timing couldn’t be worse for the city’s Indian restaurants. Saturday marks the start of Diwali, the five-day Hindu festival of lights that’s India’s most important holiday and one of the busiest times of year for Indian restaurants.These restaurants had already created elaborate Diwali menus, bought special ingredients, planned for extra staffing and booked reservations. The owners expected a chance — especially on Saturday night — to make up for some lost revenue during a...

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Janelle Bitker

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San Francisco’s indoor dining ban hits Indian restaurants hard ahead of Diwali

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