In March 2020, the Coronavirus 2019 pandemic swept the globe leaving businesses dramatically impacted by the extreme changes in consumer behavior. Small businesses were left to fend for themselves before gaining access to financial relief through the CARES Act. One pizzeria and Italian restaurant in the heart of Yonkers, New York was one of the thousands of small businesses impacted by the wrath of the pandemic.
Dom & Vinnie’s, located on Saw Mill River Road in Yonkers, New York has been my home for the entire course of my life. My grandfather Dominic, along with his brother Vinnie, opened the restaurant after moving to the United States from Naples, Italy. I personally began working in the family business as soon as I was able to walk. Currently, my father Joseph and his cousin Mike manage the restaurant while holding true to the family values passed on from previous generations.
At the beginning of the pandemic, I watched my family’s business preserve through the toughest times. In April, my family was directly hit by the pandemic leaving Dom & Vinnie’s with no choice other than to shut down for many weeks. Our waiters, waitresses, busboys, pizza men, delivery drivers, and chefs were left without work. George, one of our amazingly talented chefs, was left to file for unemployment along with millions of other Americans.
According to a survey of more than 5,800 small businesses taken between March 28 and April 4, 2020, small businesses saw a dramatic economic impact of the Coronavirus 2019 pandemic. Mass layoffs and closures had occurred only weeks into the crisis. The survey found that small businesses were financially fragile. The median business with more than $10,000 in monthly expenses was left with only about 2 weeks of cash on hand. With the length of the pandemic unknown, many of these businesses failed to reopen after the initial closure.
While not every person that works at Dom & Vinnie’s is a blood relative, everyone is family. Dom & Vinnie’s prioritized everyone’s safety, but it was incredibly difficult knowing that the workforce was struggling on many fronts. Luckily, with the state’s go-ahead, Dom & Vinnie’s was able to reopen with outdoor seating, but normality was not quick to resume.
Signs detailing COVID-19 guidelines, social distancing rules, and polite requests to wear a mask now line the pizzeria doors and walls. Every single business, both small and large, can be found to have this new pandemic décor throughout physical stores. Customers, all abiding by the rules, wear their masks as they politely ask for a pizza slice to go.
The lunch-time rush did not feel familiar, as one single group of men sat to have lunch in the back. In the dining room, customers are permitted to remove their masks when seated, as all the tables have been marked for social distancing. On a typical early afternoon in a pre-pandemic world, there would be a line out the door for a table in the dining room. Today, the population inside the pizzeria consists of Uber delivery drivers, our own delivery drivers as well as people quickly stopping in for a pick-up order.
As everyone adjusts to the rules of living through a pandemic, Dom & Vinnie’s has held onto the same values as we always have. Muffled conversations through uncomfortable masks and dramatic hand gestures are substitutes for the big hugs we previously gave to frequent customers, who have become family over the years. Small businesses have been struggling the most during the pandemic, and it is incredibly important to support the small businesses in your neighborhood, like Dom & Vinnie’s, through these tough times.
