Cafe comeback after virus made a meal of it

Corretto Dee Why was only 18 months old when the coronavirus blew the business model apart.

Kurtis Bosley with staff member Steph Stuart at his restaurant, Corretto Dee Why. Picture: Nikki Short

Corretto Dee Why was only 18 months old when the coronavirus blew the business model apart, but hopefully the relaxation of restrictions may start to soothe the restaurant’s pain from Friday.

What was conceived as a trendy sit-down dinner and cocktails restaurant in mid-March almost overnight was forced to pivot to takeaway to stay in business.

Restaurant owner Kurtis Bosley said he is looking forward to taking advantage of the NSW government’s relaxation of restrictions, setting up for a 50th birthday party on Friday night.

With a 10-person limit, almost 100 seats will remain empty at Corretto Dee Why, but Bosley says the relaxation is a start and he’s making the most of it while he can.

“Our plan is to look after guests who are doing group gatherings — we’re not doing smaller bookings,” he says.

“The thing that’s coming out at the moment, and where we’ve had some frustration, people are being told that we’re fully open and they don’t understand we’re still highly restricted.”

Bosley say they’ll be offering two seatings of 10 each night, with the plan to use the small numbers to test out new menu items ahead of a broader reopening.

Before the crisis struck, Corretto Dee Why had 24 staff but Bosley had to cut it down to five to stay in business.

In recognition of increased business from Friday, he is planning to employ two additional casuals to help with service.

“We’ve picked up a few casuals in the past few weeks. Being such a small group we’re very much aware of each other’s health,” he says.

Recent analysis from Deutsche Bank found the accommodation and food services industry had been smashed by the COVID lockdowns, with 314,000 workers in the sector losing their jobs since mid-March.

Young people have been heavily affected with 52 per cent of all job losses since March 14 in the under-30s age group, of which 15 per cent were teenagers.

According to recent Australian Bureau of Statistics data, more than 70 per cent of accommodation and food services and arts and recreation businesses report being adversely affected by COVID-19.

But despite the reopening Bosley says he is concerned about the potential for the virus to spread in the community and has made sure staff continue with social distancing.

Hand sanitiser is also on offer at the door.

“Some of the best initiatives are that a lot of distilleries have swapped to doing hand sanitiser — Ironbark distillery has been dropping off sanitiser for us,” the 28-year-old says.

“By offering hand sanitiser when we welcome guests we can ensure they’re not bringing in any germs on their hands.”