Already facing a slow season, restaurants struggle with multi-day power outages.

Tajha Chappellet-Lanier here, thinking about the myriad ways Monterey County is impacted by the recent storms—from Pajaro flooding to ongoing power outages to the people still cut off by road closures on Big Sur’s south coast. My colleagues at the Weekly have been doing an incredible job covering the various aspects and impacts of the storm, and we’ll continue to do so as recovery begins. You can read all our winter storm coverage here.

One major disruptive factor after the most recent atmospheric river has been ongoing, long-lasting power outages on the Monterey Peninsula. In a news story in this week’s paper, staff writer Rey Mashayekhi asks about the business side: What happens when restaurants and food businesses are hit with multi-day power outages? As you might be able to imagine, for an industry that relies on perishable goods, it’s not good news—restaurants and caterers found themselves throwing away hundreds, if not thousands of dollars worth of food.

And as restaurateurs point out to Mashayekhi, it’s not just the power outages that are making things difficult. The storms are just another challenge in what’s been a slow and difficult restaurant year so far. “To make a profit these days in the restaurant industry, the margins are so low,” says Soerke Peters, owner of Mezzaluna Pasteria in Pacific Grove, citing the climbing costs of rent, taxes, labor and insurance. “It’s getting more difficult by the year, and eventually it’s going to be unsustainable.”

That’s pretty dire messaging from a key part of Monterey County’s huge hospitality industry. And it’s yet another reminder to go support your favorite neighborhood restaurant if you can.

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