Watch: Wichita restaurant owners talk about how they’re surviving COVID-19
Most Wichita businesses have been suffering as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the shutdowns and restrictions that have come along with it. Their sales are drastically down over last year, and they’re having to get creative to keep the doors open. It’s hard for all restaurant owners, but especially so for owners of small, locally-owned places.
Denise Neil, longtime Wichita Eagle restaurant and food writer, talked with three well-known Wichita restaurant owners who have been working to stay afloat since the pandemic started nine months ago.
Denise and the owners discussed the constantly changing rules and safety precautions they’ve faced, ways they’ve tried to stay open and safe at the same time, and their fears about surviving another shutdown — and about what Wichita’s dining scene would look like if only the deep-pocketed chains survive.
They also discussed ways Wichitans can help them get to the other side of the pandemic.
The conversation was moderated by Denise Neil of the Wichita Eagle, who has been covering Wichita’s restaurant scene for 20 years and whose stories are posted daily at Kansas.com/dining and at Dining with Denise on Facebook.
Natasha Gandhi-Rue, owner of The Kitchen restaurant at 725 E. Douglas. Gandhi-Rue, a graduate of New York City’s French Culinary Institute, started her culinary career working as the national culinary manager for Williams Sonoma. She opened The Kitchen in November 2016. Before the pandemic, she had launched a series of successful cooking classes at her restaurant. In the spring, she was the winner of an episode of Food Network’s “Guy’s Grocery Games,” hosted by celebrity chef Guy Fieri.
Dan Norton, owner of Nortons Brewing Company at 125 N. St. Francis. Norton started as a server and bartender at River City Brewing Co. in Wichita 20 years ago, and when the head brewer needed an assistant, Norton volunteered. He rose through the ranks and was promoted to head brewer, a job he held until he left in 2017 to open his own restaurant and brewery with his wife and business partner, Becky. Nortons Brewing Company opened in April 2018 with a big outdoor beer garden boasting a stage for live music. It had become one of Wichita’s most crowded nighttime hangouts by the time the pandemic started.
Andrew Gough, owner of Reverie Coffee Roasters at 2202 E. Douglas. Gough was working as a financial consultant when his passion for coffee led him to start a coffee roasting business in 2013. Though it wasn’t his original intention, Reverie quickly became a popular coffee house, too, and in January 2018, he moved the business to a 10,000-square-foot space, adding an adjoining bakery. Gough, who also runs a robust wholesale coffee business, was operating a cafe inside the new Wichita Advanced Learning Library until recently, when he put it on pandemic pause.
This story was originally published December 9, 2020 at 5:01 AM.