CT Restaurant Association, DoorDash deliver grants to struggling dining establishments

A number of Fairfield County restaurants are among the 92 recipients of $5,000 grants from the Connecticut Restaurant Relief Fund program, overseen by the Connecticut Restaurant Association (CRA) and DoorDash.

The grants are being administered by the Connecticut Hospitality Educational Foundation, the CRA’s philanthropic 501(c)(3) arm. The funds will be used to cover operating costs, including rent, payroll, purchasing PPE, expanding outdoor dining capacity, and other expenses.

“The restaurant industry has been hit so hard over the past year, and it”™s critical we save as many local restaurants as possible so they can be part of Connecticut”™s post-Covid economic recovery,” said CRA Executive Director Scott Dolch, who said the group plans to start mailing checks next week.

“It is our hope that this grant along, with other funding from the state and federal resources, will help our state”™s restaurants keep their doors open, keep employees working, and keep serving customers while they continue to recover from this pandemic,” Dolch said.

The grants are a part of DoorDash”™s five-year, $200 million Main Street Strong Pledge to empower local communities, which included a $10 million grant program effort across select cities, states, and counties in the U.S. and Canada, of which Connecticut received $500,000 earlier this year.

During the first round of DoorDash”™s Main Street Strong Covid-19 relief grants in 2020, 85% of restaurants stated that one of the biggest impacts on their business was reduced sales due to Covid restrictions, and 82% cited lost revenue attributed to the declining economy.

Door Dash”™s efforts include:

  • Providing $120 million in commission relief and marketing investments.
  • 50% reduction in commissions for local restaurants with five or fewer locations in the first months of the pandemic, plus 0% commissions for the first 30 days for restaurants new to DoorDash.
  • 50% reduction in commissions for mom-and-pop restaurants, plus 0% commissions for pickup and 0% commissions for restaurants new to DoorDash.
  • Free personal safety equipment for Dashers, including hand sanitizer, gloves, wipes, and masks.
  • Two weeks of earnings for eligible Dashers affected by the virus.
  • Covid-19 screenings and telemedicine appointments for $4 for Dashers per visit.
  • Partnering with BlueVine, a leading provider of small business banking solutions, to provide a customized Payment Protection Program (PPP) application for merchant partners to help make PPP loans more accessible.

Fairfield County restaurants each receiving a $5,000 grant are: Taproot, Notch 8 (both Bethel); BRYAC (Bridgeport); Del Primo Ristorante & Bar (Brookfield); Two Steps Downtown Grille (Danbury); J.B. Percival Co. (Fairfield); Gallo, The Ancient Mariner (both Ridgefield); Breeze Latin Fusion Cuisine (Shelton); Curley’s Diner, Roost, Murphy’s Townhouse Café, Chico’s Cocina, and KUMO (all Stamford); The Blue Goose, Brickbox (both Stratford); and Manna Toast (Westport).