SEQ restaurant revenue dives while Queenslanders embrace gourmet takeaway

Restaurateurs are fighting to make ends meet, with the snap lockdown making revenues drop by 80 per cent, but there may be some good news for those top venues able to pivot to takeaway.

SEQ hospitality businesses have been smashed by the current lockdown, with revenue plummeting by as much as 80 per cent in some venues, and most are scrambling to just make ends meet.

But, wile the venues are struggling, Queensland diners are embracing the opportunity to score some unlikely gourmet takeaway options.

After being left with full fridges of produce ready for a busy weekend service when Saturday’s snap lockdown was called, restaurants and cafes across the state are now trying to recoup massive losses, which they say could take months to rebound from.

Restaurant & Catering Australia estimates the current stay-at-home orders will cost the industry more than $130 million in cancelled bookings and events, with dozens of operations teetering on the edge of collapse.

David Flynn, co-owner of South Brisbane contemporary Chinese restaurant Southside, said despite moving to takeaway food and alcohol immediately on Saturday night, revenue was down about 80 per cent.

“We can still do takeaway, but it’s just a drop in the ocean in terms of revenue of what we would normally be able to bring in,” he said.

“The cash flow is not there but it’s not just the lockdown loss, it’s the time that it takes to recover. We find after these lockdowns it takes about a month for everything to bounce back.”

David Flynn, owner operator, outside his restaurant Southside, which has switched to takeaway. Picture: Steve Pohlner

He said the income from the takeaway service would be used to pay wages of full-time staff, while employees would also be accessing government handouts, and the business would tap into the $5000 government grants.

“Our strategy is to spend as little money as possible and be super lean and conserve cash and just wait it out,” he said.

“The biggest cost to us is loss of trade versus business overheads. With sudden lockdowns, which have completely open ended timelines, we aren’t able to suddenly reduce the business overheads to 15 per cent of what they usually are, which is what we are looking at in terms of revenue reduction even with takeaway.”

Meanwhile, Brisbane’s Jocelyn’s Provisions, which specialises in cakes, baked goods and ready meals and has stores across the city and a wholesale business, said revenue was down about 60 per cent.

“People are definitely going for cheaper products and littler things because they can’t have parties and big cakes to share around,” owner Caitlin Gallagher said.

“I’m wary. We obviously try to cut overheads as much as possible but there’s only so many you can cut and I don’t stand people down because they’ve got to pay their rent and live.”

Mrs Gallagher said the business had lost its entire wholesale and catering and event trade, and also had to wear the cost of cancelled wedding cakes from last weekend and this weekend with weddings unable to go ahead.

Brisbane Middle Eastern restaurant Gerard’s Bistro switched to their popular lockdown takeaway menu over the weekend, but head chef Adam Wolfers said it had been a bumpy experience.

“First weekend was really good, but I think when they said [lockdown] was going to go for another week at least, I think some people on the Monday and Tuesday got a bit disheartened and didn’t order. I think it’s all sunk in now and so we’re a lot busier from yesterday and today,” he said.

But he said the takeaway was not about making a profit, simply keeping staff employed.

“It’s more just a survival thing where we’ve designed a menu to make it affordable for everyone so we can pay our suppliers, pay the staff and pay the rent,” he said.

Dan Arnold from Fortitude Valley French fine diner Restaurant Dan Arnold said he also had to switch to takeaway – offering a fine dining at home menu and special bakery range – just to pay staff and bills and keep employees in jobs.

“It’s just a logistical nightmare for a restaurant like ours to switch from what we do to takeaway,” Mr Arnold said. “It takes three solid days to get everything ready for Saturday pick up.”

But it’s not just venues being hit hard by the lockdowns, suppliers are also doing it tough. The lockdown has forced eateries to cancel their usual weekly orders with everyone from fishmongers and bakeries to wine suppliers left in the lurch.

For truffle providore Deb Oliver of Lady Truffle, she was forced to pull dozens of orders at the last minute on Saturday that were destined for top restaurants around the state.

“It’s a loss for the farmers and the chefs and the restaurants as well,” she said.

To recoup some of those losses, Ms Oliver switched to selling truffles into delis and speciality grocers across Queensland for consumers to buy direct, which proved extremely popular compared to selling into risk-adverse restaurants.

“You’ve got restaurants who don’t want to spend the money on anything expensive because they can get caught out,” she said.

Restaurant & Catering Australia CEO Wes Lambert said the current lockdown would cost the hospitality industry in Queensland more than $130 million and said more needed to be done financially to help.

“While the announcement of disaster support for employees and grants for small businesses is helpful, replicating the (NSW) JobSaver program will ensure that struggling businesses in Queensland get the support they need,” he said. “The most important priority must be ensuring that this lockdown does not extend again.”

GOURMET TAKEAWAY A HIT WITH QUEENSLANDERS

While takeaway may be putting a strain on restaurants financially, Queensland diners are loving the opportunity to eat from some of the state’s best restaurants at home.

Brisbane-based online ordering and payment platform Bopple, said takeaway orders had been booming with deliveries last Thursday compared to this Thursday up more than 118 per cent.

“We need to stay at home or risk shopping at a hotspot (so) understandably, many are choosing to support local businesses by ordering home delivery,” said Bopple CEO Angus McLachlan.

Shannon and Tim Stewart with wine and dinner packs at their restaurant The North Room, who launched a lockdown takeaway offering that sold out in under three hours. Picture: Nigel Hallett

He said some businesses, including Fortitude Valley’s Happy Boy and Morningside’s Broken Hearts Burger Club, had experienced record takeaway orders during the lockdown, while order volume on the platform had increased by 40.7 per cent in the last four weeks compared to the previous four weeks.

On the Gold Coast, highly revered contemporary restaurant The North Room in Mermaid Beach has been overwhelmed with community support, with their refined three-course dinner packs for this week selling out in under three hours and attracting a waitlist.

“I didn’t expect it to sell out,” said Shannon Stewart, who owns the business with chef husband Tim. “The support was overwhelming – it was just phenomenal. Tim and I, our hearts are exploding.”