Customer Sue Sefcik of Poland, who works in Leavittsburg, left, picks up her carry-out lunch order at Mocha House in downtown Warren as Shannon Fannin of Warren, a Mocha House employee, rings out the order. Staff photo/ R. Michael Semple

Restaurants have streamlined their menus and are offering discounts, delivery and take-out to weather the coronavirus pandemic and keep the community fed and, as best they can, keep their employees employed.

Many have made the difficult decision to reduce staff — gone are the servers, dishwashers, busboys and the like — and are keeping skeleton crews on in the kitchens since Sunday’s order that all restaurants and bars in Ohio close to dine-in patrons.

Still, the community, knowing what’s at stake to keep businesses viable, is supporting keeping these small ventures afloat by taking advantage of the carry-out and delivery services.

And it’s just not restaurants that deliver; one local retailer with stores at the Eastwood and Southern Park malls is offering services to its customers.

LOCAL RESTAURANTS

On Wednesday, several restaurants in the Mahoning Valley were busy delivering food orders and preparing carry-out meals before the noon lunch hour.

Bill Axiotis, co-owner of Mocha House restaurants on High Street NE, Warren, and on East Boardman Street, Youngstown, said the business is offering 25 percent off on carry-out.

“It’s really more of an incentive to keep the employees working,” said Axiotis. “That is the main objective.”

He said he is at about 50 percent staff. Those who stayed on are multitasking. For example, “I had my baker on day one of this up here cooking,” Axiotis said.

On North Walnut Street in Youngstown, Joe Cassese, owner of Cassese’s MVR, said he’s trying to reconfigure a business model for full-service restaurants to do more carry-out.

“I think one of the biggest issues any full-service restaurant is facing, that most people do not realize, is that carry-out business is sometimes less than 5 percent of total sales for the day and so, while it is obviously up because it’s all that we can currently do, we are really all individually trying to figure out what makes the most sense for our own business to keep the carry-out option available,” Cassese said.

“Even though people have been phenomenally as supportive as they can, the business model isn’t the same. When you start to look at the square footage of Cassese’s MVR and our kitchen and what it takes to open the business every day, you’re really just trying to make sense and possibly streamline our menu because it’s not at the point of making a profit,” Cassese said.

“It’s about keeping what few people we can employed and just trying to be there for community,” he said.

During the peak busy summer season, MVR employs about 75 full- and part-time workers. Cassese said he’s trying to keep six on staff nowadays. He also lost three banquet-type events at Youngstown State University.

“I believe, my personal feelings are, I am so thankful this community has supported my family and my employees and staffs for so long that I am trying to stay open as long as I can because I feel I have an obligation because they have been so supportive of us,” Cassese said. “It’s not about numbers. It’s about all of us as a community rallying to get through this.”

Ken Haidaris, co-owner of the Sunrise Inn on East Market Street, Warren, said he has maybe 15 employees working, down from about 65. He’s staffing the wings, chicken and pizza parlor, has a skeleton crew in the kitchen and has modified his menu.

“It’s tough because you hate to see the people, your associates, they are all hurting right now,” Haidaris said.

His carry-out orders have been steady.

“We’re hoping this virus gets through quickly and our employees get back to work,” Haidaris said. “A lot of people rely on us. And the community, too, we rely on the community.”

Other deliveries

DoorDash, Uber Eats and GrubHub are other food-delivery options. And retailers such as Target and Giant Eagle offer options to consumers who want to distance themselves socially, with at-home and curbside delivery.

At least one local business has already latched onto the trend. Paul and Stacie Kaldy, owners of Tri-Healthy, a CBD store with locations in Niles and in Boardman, started delivering to clients Saturday.

This was done only after assessing the risk to themselves, their employees and their customers, a majority of which fall within the red zone of being high-risk if they do contract COVID-19 in public.

“Our overall goal in this business is to make people feel better and get them healthier, and having them be exposed to the environment to come get different supplies, we had to make some kind of an audible for our business, so we introduced a home delivery program,” said Paul Kaldy.

Delivery is within 10 miles of each mall. There is no minimum order amount needed, but there is $9.99 fee. That fee is waived for people 55 and older, those who are disabled and for veterans. Most deliveries will be the same day, Kaldy said. If not, delivery will be the next day.

Target has offered order pickup and drive-up and same-day delivery. A message from Target CEO and chairman Brian Cornell on the company’s website states it is “staffing up” teams to support those in-demand services. The chain began limiting the number of key items per purchase on March 7.

Several Giant Eagle stores in the Mahoning Valley offer Curbside Express, a grocery delivery and pickup service, according to the grocer’s website. Pick-up is free for orders of $35 or more. For delivery, it is $5.95 for next-day and $9.95 for same-day service. The minimum order for delivery is $35.

Local stores on the website that offer the service are in Austintown, Canfield, Liberty, Boardman, Howland, Poland, Salem and Hermitage, Pa.

rselak@tribtoday.com