Local businesses show appreciation for essential workers

BAY RIDGE — While many restaurants and bars have been forced to close due to the coronavirus pandemic, others are struggling to stay alive by offering various take-out services. Additionally, many are giving back to the community by offering discounts and other perks to the workers who are on the front lines and putting themselves at risk in the fight against COVID-19.

Assemblymember Nicole Malliotakis called these small businesses heroic for their actions. “They are giving back to the community by providing discounts to our healthcare workers and our first responders,” Malliotakis, whose district includes Southwest Brooklyn and Staten Island, told this paper.

Restaurants offering discounts

Some of the local Bay Ridge restaurants along Third Avenue offering special discounts to healthcare workers and first responders include South Brooklyn Foundry (69th Street), Salty Dog (75th Street), Tuscany Grill, The Kettle Black and Ho’Brah (87th Street).

Agnes Kelly, who co-owns South Brooklyn Foundry with Chef Rey Martinez and Sam Dabas, said she wishes she could do even more. “I had received a call from a member of Assemblymember Malliotakis’ staff asking if my restaurant would be willing to give any of the first responders or New York City police officers a discount if they came to order,” Kelly told this paper.

“I absolutely 100 percent agree with giving back to all of our essential workers and anyone that needs a helping hand during these rough, rough times. We just need to band together and help each other in any way we can,” Kelly added.

Malliotakis said that it just goes to show how in difficult times we come together as a community to help one another.

“I think we in turn need to help these small businesses by ordering from the ones still doing delivery and take-out. They need our support to get past this difficult period where they’ve been mandated to close and are not receiving the cash flow they normally would have,” she added.

Federal relief package

Malliotakis said that she has spoken to many small business owners and that they want to keep their employees working. She credited the recently passed $2 trillion federal relief package as a means of providing critical aid to small businesses.

“As a result of this stimulus package employers may be able to keep their employees working and also it will provide the necessary immediate relief for those who have all of a sudden found themselves out of work,” added Malliotakis.

Bob Howe, president of the Merchants of Third Avenue, also praised the heroism of the restaurants that still open for business.

“As always, the Bay Ridge community and the Bay Ridge Merchants always try to give back even when they are suffering,” Howe told this paper. “It is an admirable quality of our community,” he added.