The first week of September was traumatic for Hathorne owner John Stephenson. The ex-chef at Fido and The Family Wash announced on Tuesday of that week that he would shutter his Sylvan Park restaurant after Saturday night service, citing rising costs and staffing issues as the reasons for the closure. The previous week the restaurant had to close temporarily when several members of his staff contracted COVID.
He was operating his business on the razor’s edge. The reservation books immediately filled up for the final planned services, and on that Thursday night Hathorne served 220 guests. “We didn’t want to wither away,” Stephenson recalls.
“We wanted to end on a high note. We saw so many old faces. It was a great night!” Unfortunately, circumstances conspired to make opening for the final weekend impossible.
“We were short in the kitchen, and we can’t run without a dishwasher and a line cook,” he explains. “I had to take care of the health and safety of my employees.” Attracting employees was an ongoing problem.
“We had been looking for line cooks for six to eight months. I figured we’d get 60 candidates and schedule 30 to 40 interviews. Two people showed up for interviews, and one of them flaked before the first shift.
That was the final straw when I decided we couldn’t continue.” That’s the environment many smaller independent restaurants find themselves in during the current hospitality-labor climate. But there are several massive culinary o.