Orlando restaurants, bars dealing with staffing shortages due to COVID-19
ORLANDO, Fla. - Several restaurants in the greater Orlando area have shut down because their staff members have tested positive for COVID-19.
Häos on Church in Downtown Orlando closed around Christmas because several employees tested positive for COVID-19, even though all employees were vaccinated, according to the owner. The restaurant reopened on New Year's Eve only to close for a second time when more employees tested positive for the virus. On Saturday, the restaurant will finally and safely reopen after a week of being closed.
"It’s minute to minute, you can’t really make plans. You need to roll with what the days give you, and you hope it’s going to be goodness," said Blue Star the creator at Häos on Church.
Häos on Church isn't the only restaurant in the Orlando area that's been hit hard by COVID-19. The Osprey, Sixty Vines, The Strand, and others recently closed for days and have since reopened after employees tested positive for COVID-19.
"Every single day when you wake up you wait for the phone to go off, who’s sick, who’s feeling better, who’s positive, who’s negative," said Star.
The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association launched a campaign called: Please Be Kind. The organization is encouraging the community to be patient as restaurants deal with shortages.
"These restaurants are really trying hard to stay open," said Keri Burns with the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association. "It’s a 'one day at a time' with respect to everything. We don’t know what the COVID-19 numbers look like tomorrow, we don’t know who's showing up to work, what’s showing up on that delivery truck tomorrow. So just please be patient with us."
On top of staffing shortages restaurants are also dealing with a supply chain crisis. Häos on Church had to adjust its menu for this weekend because there were certain items they couldn't get.
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