UpdatedWed, May 5, 2021 at 4:59 pm ET
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(Shutterstock)
WOODBRIDGE, NJ Outrageous. Unreal. I ve never seen it this bad in 19 years in the business.
One by one, multiple Woodbridge restaurant owners told Patch they are currently facing an unprecedented new problem: They cannot find people to come into work. I ve owned this restaurant for 19 years and I ve never seen anything like this before, said Paul LaGrutta, the chef and co-owner of Mullberry Street, a very popular Italian fine dining establishment on Rahway Avenue.
Subscribe It s desperately bad. Right now I m looking for two bartenders, three servers, a bus boy and a hostess. I can t get people for love or money. I ve never seen this before, ever.
What about the servers and bartenders?
I am no longer tipping at your restaurants I bet you are going to raise prices now I bet you are only doing this to make money and that you drive a Lamborghini.
Sheesh..folks, take a breathe. I drive a van. I haven t raised prices one cent and I don t plan to. All of this can fall under the category of no good deed goes unpunished, sighed Tim McLoone.
When you get down to it, the main reason behind the backlash is out of defense for the servers and bartenders.
Think about it if they started making $15/hour, they would most likely take a pay cut versus accepting tips.
N.J. restaurant owner banks on dining surge, offers $15 an hour to recruit workers
Updated May 04, 2021;
Posted May 04, 2021
Tim McLoone s Supper Club and The Robinson Ale House in Asbury Park. (Lori M. Nichols | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)NJ Advance Media
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Even before Gov. Phil Murphy’s announcement Monday that indoor dining capacity limits for restaurants would be lifted later this month, prominent New Jersey restauranteur Tim McLoone was already banking on a big summer as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to decline.
“I think there’s some pent-up demand,” McLoone said. “People want to get out and some people have a little extra money in their pockets.”
UpdatedMon, May 3, 2021 at 6:37 pm ET
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Who McLoone s new wage policy is meant to help: The non-tipped back of the house. (Shutterstock)
$15 an hour does not apply to waiters, waitresses and bartenders. (Shutterstock)
TINTON FALLS, NJ Jersey Shore restaurateur Tim McCloone announced Thursday that, effective immediately, all non-tipped employees across his restaurant empire will be paid $15 an hour. The new policy applies to prep cooks, dishwashers and hostesses. It does not apply to waiters, waitresses and bartenders. Related: $15-An-Hour Does Not Apply To Waiters, Waitresses, Bartenders
He may be the first large-scale restaurant owner in the state to enact such a policy.
Coronavirus in N.J.: What’s reopened, what concerts, festivals and shows are rescheduled, canceled. (April 28, 2021)
Posted Apr 28, 2021
♦ The Summit-based New Jersey Dance Theatre Ensemble will mount its 52nd anniversary performance of “¡Ballie di Primavera! The Dances of Spring” online 7 p.m. Sunday, May 2.
The program will feature NJDTE pre-professional dancers ages 10-18 and include works by; Christopher Bloom of Ballet Hispánico, excerpts of “Don Quixote” and “Paquita” staged by the ensemble’s rehearsal director Alexandra Gonzalez, “Parallel” staged by artistic director Nancy Turano, and Paul Taylor’s “Cloven Kingdom”, staged by 20-year Paul Taylor veteran Michelle Fleet.
Tickets are $40 per viewing device. For information email info@njdte.org, phone 908-273-5500 or visit njdte.org.