Business off the platter: Eateries may shut again in Lucknow

LUCKNOW: It has been nearly a month when hospitality sector was allowed to resume operations, but at least 40% hotels in Lucknow are either still closed or planning to shut down due to poor footfall.
Similarly, barely 30% restaurants in the city are functioning.
The government had on June 8 allowed hotels and restaurants to reopen while following precautionary measures as per Covid-19 protocol.
Amit Agarwal, owner of Sagar Ratna, said: “What are functioning right now are largely non-vegetarian restaurants and that too for takeaways. This is because meat is still not easily available in the city. Most establishments have still not resumed operations and are waiting to see how the market moves. Many hotels and restaurants which opened in June have shut down as people are not stepping out.”
Agarwal said several popular chains of restaurants have already pulled out of the city as they could not afford rentals.
“Night curfew, currently from 10pm to 5am, has been highly detrimental to business. People in Lucknow like to eat out during night but we have been asked to shut by 9.30pm. Bars have also not opened yet which could have helped bring in some crowd. Only a few high-end restaurants are open,” he said.
The situation is no better for hotel industry. General secretary of UP Hotels and Restaurants Association Garish Oberoi said almost 40% hotels are “semi-shut” which means they are working with skeletal staff.
“Travelling is almost non-existent. People who take flights prefer to return home the same day so occupancy is almost negligible. The only enquiries hotels have been getting are for weddings in winter but they too are not able to commit to the number of guests as nobody knows what the situation will be then,” he said.
Oberoi said in a place like Lucknow, it is a norm to serve only those guests in restaurants who are staying in hotels. “Their restaurants too, therefore, are not working since there are no guests. Bars are shut so food preparation, like snacks served with drinks, has also stopped,” he said.
Another hotel owner said there are enquiries for quarantine facilities but hotels are wary of taking such guests in case any of them tests positive. “Even the staff does not want to serve such guests,” he said.