Operations

Operating a restaurant involves a lot of moving parts – most controlled by you, but many controlled by laws, regulations, licenses and permits. Alcoholic beverages, food safety, labor practices and the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (the healthcare mandate) are significant – and then there is everything else.

Get to know the regulatory agencies that govern such things as sidewalk cafes, signage, noise, fire safety and more. And, get to know about the efforts being made by RAMW on your behalf to improve the regulatory environment.

Get Shift Done Initiative Launches for the DMV region

April 23, 2020

Washington Nationals Philanthropies and the Greater Washington Community Foundation today announced a new partnership with Get Shift Done to launch the Get Shift Done DMV initiative which will coordinate, schedule, and pay adversely affected hourly workers in the hospitality industry to work shifts for local food access providers.

PPP Clarifications and Recommendations 4/22

April 23, 2020

We received many questions from you in search of guidance on the Payroll Protection Program (PPP). Our partner, Matt Hetrick of CPA Eats provided some guidance to help answer some of your most pressing questions.

Webinar: Insurance Coverage for DC Area Restaurants 5/6

April 22, 2020

WEBINAR - UTILIZING INSURANCE TO MITIGATE LOSSES AND LIABILITIES RESULTING FROM THE CORONAVIRUS Lowenstein Sandler’s Insurance Recovery Group represents exclusively policyholders in seeking coverage from their insurers. They have received numerous inquiries regarding coverage for losses stemming from business interruption following COVID-19. They are offering a webinar on May 6 on that topic. The loss of life and economic costs from the COVID-19 pandemic have been staggering. Over the past few weeks, the entire business landscape has changed in fundamental ways. COVID-19 has forced...

Federal PPP Funding Increase 4/22

April 22, 2020

Congress has reached a deal for what we have been referring to as Phase 3.5 of federal relief. The Senate passed a bill on Tuesday that provides a $484 billion relief package that includes $310 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), $60 billion will be set aside for smaller lending facilities, including "community financial institutions, small insured depository institutions and credit unions with assets less than $10 billion."

Advocacy Efforts and Local Updates 4/21

April 21, 2020

Over the weekend, we launched an aggressive campaign to advocate for Congress to provide relief that works for our industry as they enter into discussions of what Phase IV of federal relief and aid will look like.

Reopening Protocol and Information Needed

April 20, 2020

Dear Operator, I hope you took a little time over the weekend to breathe in Spring. We are all grateful for you as you continue to work hard, lead your teams, and bring needed joy and sustenance to those ordering your delicious meals and goods for takeout and delivery. As you might imagine, we are being pulled into countless conversations with leaders around the country about what the reopening of restaurants, retail and business in general may look like. There are a lot of conversations with other states as they coordinate in state clusters with state governors as to what a phased-in re-...

ACT NOW to Tell Congress We Need #RestaurantRelief

April 20, 2020

Dear Operator, This weekend we launced our Congressional industry-wide campaign focused on ensuring that Phase IV of the relief package addresses the real needs of our industry, and we NEED YOU TO TAKE ACTION TODAY . While Congress is still working on increasing funding for PPP (what we have referred to as Phase 3.5), it is important that they start hearing from our local industry about the major fixes and overall mechanisms for relief that need to be made. We are including increasing funding for PPP into our campaign, even though it will likely be addressed in the Phase 3.5 vote next week...

USI Webinar COVID-19: Impact on the Hospitality and Retail Industry

April 20, 2020

With so much COVID-19 related information available, it can be hard to find specific guidance as it relates to insurance for the hospitality and retail business. USI has put together a webinar, COVID-19: Impact on the Hospitality and Retail Industry, to address this. It provides critical and timely insight including actions that can be taken today to minimize the impact of the pandemic on an organization and their employees. This 30-minute on-demand webinar covers important information including: Issues created by COVID-19 that could affect the hospitality, retail or related business...

Shift Your Sales Strategy to Online

April 15, 2020

Social distancing has increased the adoption of online ordering as people spend more time at home. Having an ecommerce presence has never been more important to close the distance between you and customers.

Tactical Solutions for Downtown Restaurants

April 10, 2020

Original content c/o: Streetsense In the last month alone the retail and restaurant industry has been flipped upside down. Many local small businesses, however, are standing ground and leveraging existing conditions as an opportunity to test new product offerings and services, and most importantly, give back to the communities in need. Here are some quick solutions culled from our conversations with front-line business service providers, including the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership and Downtown Memphis Commission . We continue to be inspired by the creative ways in which businesses continue...