7 things you can do to help the restaurant community

The restaurant community, which in good times (and even now, in extremely bad times) lends a hand to various social causes, is on the ropes. The numbers of closings and idled workers are staggering. It is also not clear what the business will look like three months, six months, a year, or even two years from now.

Here are a few things that you can do to help, in no particular order:

The Pennsylvania Restaurant & Lodging Association, the state’s representative to the National Restaurant Association, created a relief fund for hospitality workers. Hospitality Assistance Response of Pennsylvania (HARP), whose funding was seeded by Tito’s Vodka and Yuengling, opens its relief fund on April 23, distributing one-time $250 grants to jobless industry workers. It’s first-come, first-served, and the immediate goal is $250,000 by early May. Donations — 100% of which will go to the fund — can be made online or by texting HARP to 44-321.

» READ MORE: If you can afford it, here’s how to use your stimulus check to help Philly.

The James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Beverage Industry Relief Fund is awarding microgrants to small- and medium-size restaurants. It has $4 million in pledges so far. The first round of $15,000 grants went to 36 restaurants across the country.

This is a fairly obvious benefit to a restaurant, whether it offered carryout and delivery before the crisis or whether it added the services later. With dining rooms and bars closed, and catering out of the question, food sales are their only source of income. For many, these bucks are keeping the lights on. Two tips: 1. Call in your order directly to bypass the apps (Grubhub, DoorDash, Caviar, etc.), which charge exorbitant fees. And 2. Tip staff lavishly, even if you “never tip on takeout."

» READ MORE: Restaurants that are open for pickup and delivery in the Philadelphia area

Contact your favorite restaurant and ask if there’s a fund. Then donate. Many restaurants have GoFundMe campaigns and are selling gift cards, with proceeds going to staff or owners. Keep in mind that although many staffers may qualify for unemployment benefits, owners sometimes do not. They also will need money to reopen fully when the time comes.

You may have a card in your hot little hands, but hang on for a bit, Sparky. Use it later, as the restaurant becomes more solvent. Of course, it’s quite possible that some restaurants won’t survive this crisis. In that case, consider your gift-card purchase a donation. (Tip: Erie Insurance is now covering gift-card losses on its homeowners policies.)

» READ MORE: Can I get the coronavirus from mail or food delivery? The risk is tiny, and you can make it even smaller.

That T-shirt or mug might help feed a restaurateur’s family.

How much political business is transacted in restaurants? Pretty much all of it. Call your or write your elected officials to endorse restaurant bailouts. Although the federal Paycheck Protection Program is pumping almost $700 billion in loans into the economy, its rules make it impractical for many restaurants.