MEMPHIS, Tenn. — It’s been tough for restaurants in 2020, with closures and earlier close times, but now they are starting a stronger relationship with the health department.
Restaurant owners and the health department have entered a new phase of dialogue after the Memphis Restaurant Association sent a letter calling for better communication.
It’s been called a good first step.
“It was good that we were able to get on the same page,” said Shawn Danko, the owner of Kooky Canuck and the incoming vice president of the Memphis Restaurant Association. “We were able to agree on some increased lines of communication moving forward.”
Danko was on a recent conference call with the health department director Alisa Haushalter and Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris about recent health directives.
“When new protocols come out, they can be a little bit more clearer for the restaurant industry and restaurants can implement those protocols quicker,” said Danko.
The meeting was called together after the restaurant association sent a November 25th letter to Haushalter – signed by 169 restaurants and employees.
“Mayor Harris got a hold of the letter and was very willing and wanted to actively be a part of that conversation,” said Danko.
That letter has now sparked a fresh dialogue between the health department and restaurant association in part concerning how they decide on restrictions.
“The term that the health department used was it’s a rationale of how they arrive at protocols not just a set of data,” Danko explained.
Danko said restaurants are thankful the latest round of protocols didn’t mean closures, saying it would devastate the industry.
“When it comes to health department regulations, if we don’t follow it, if we don’t abide our reputation, is at stake.”
The next meeting is set for December 17.