It could be weeks before restaurants officially reopen, but in Yonkers, officials are teaming up with local businesses to find away around that.
From delivery to curbside pickup, DeCosta's Fine Italian Dining in Yonkers is finding its new norm.
"The majority of our business before was inside dining with about 15% takeout, which has made the shift to 100% takeout, so it's really changed the whole dynamic," says Nuno DeCosta, of DeCosta's Fine Italian Dining.
Despite sales being down about 40%, the restaurant has managed to stay afloat as it waits for the green light from the state to resume dining room services.
"We're not sure if that's going to allow us to have certain percentage, if that's going to allow us to have inside dining, we're not even sure what they're going to require of us which is probably the worse part about all of this," says DeCosta.
There was some good news from the mayor's office: an emergency order allows restaurants to apply for outdoor dining permits. It's something co-owner Nuno DeCosta says will help her business.
"That was probably the most excitement we've had in months, when the opportunity came out to get the outdoor permit as that might be part of what our opening phase is," she says.
Once the state authorizes outdoor dining, restaurants will be able to use sidewalks, parking areas or other suitable spots. DeCosta's plans on using a front parking lot.
"We did the measurements and we have over 2,700 square-feet of space that we can use to allow plenty of tables and our goal is to have a minimum of 12 feet between every table. So in the meantime we're just procuring all items for the outside dining, for the sanitizing, just to be ready," says DeCosta.
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