Asheville restaurants reflect on end of boil-water notice nearly two months after Helene

ASHEVILLE – The Nov. 18 lifting of the city’s boil water notice provided relief to Asheville food and beverage establishments, although the respite is celebrated with some reservation.

Some restaurateurs fear letting their guard down too soon. The weight of paying the bill for sourcing potable water sits heavy, they said.

“I’m cautiously excited,” Jeff Miller, owner of Luella’s Bar-B-Que, said hours after the announcement. “There’s public safety and our own health at stake here but there’s also the financial stake We’ve been paying a lot of water for potable water and ice at Luella’s. It’s been a strain on the business, no doubt about it.”

The city’s water service was restored after extensive repairs and successful water treatment at the North Fork Reservoir, which sustained considerable damage in Tropical Storm Helene. In September, Juancho’s Fonda, a Colombian fusion restaurant, opened on Sweeten Creek Road. It closed for a week in the aftermath of the storm and reopened on Oct. 4. Jeison Bosch, the owner, said the unexpected expenses and conditions put an extra strain on the fledgling business, including having to throw out and replace food after the power outage and purchasing water and ice.

He said the staff had continued to use bottled water for cooking after the boil water notice was lifted but only used the city’s water supply for tasks like washing hands and dishes. And they were focused on following Buncombe County Environmental Health’s latest guidelines, including sanitizing ice machines and flushing water lines.

“We’re going to be as safe as we can because we’re not 100% yet,” Bosch said.

Restaurants struggle to pay hefty water bills

The clock was ticking for how long potable water would be available at The Blackbird Restaurant downtown.

Chef and co-owner Michael Reppert said that after being closed since Sept. 28, Blackbird reopened on Oct. 24, using imported water purchased by and shared with building tenants, Aloft and Moxy Hotel.

Reppert said he was quoted an estimate of $5,000 to $7,000 per month for water used at Blackbird ― a tremendous hike from the average $700 paid every two months to the city.

He said the potable water system was scheduled to be disconnected at 1 p.m. on Nov. 18 due to high costs. He said the timing was perfect as the city’s boil water notice was lifted earlier the same day.

Reppert said to open, he had to agree to share the costs because the businesses share the same water lines.

As of Nov. 18, the bill hadn’t arrived, but he expects the total to be close to what was cited, considering the restaurant used an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 gallons of water on a busy day. He expected to use another 1,500 to 2,000 gallons per day on the slower November days.

Reppert said agreeing to the water supply partnership was motivated by the desire to get the staff back to work and provide normalcy for diners.

“It was worth it because we got to use silverware,” Reppert said. “So many people ate at our restaurant. It was beneficial that we didn’t have to use plastic silverware or plastic plates, that we got to have a dining experience for The Blackbird. It matters to have that experience where people could enjoy themselves and not feel like they were eating at a picnic.”

Reppert also has had to consider his other businesses, Shiloh and Gaines and Imperial Mezcalerita bars, which used less water, limited their menus and used plastic cups. Zella’s Deli, an eatery in Swannanoa, was decimated by the storm’s flood but planned to reopen in a new location.

Reppert said discussion of a payment plan with the landlord is on the table, and that it will take time to rebuild the restaurant and get revenue streams back to what it was before Helene.

“We know we have to pay for it. We don’t have full funds for it, but we will work our way back up to what our standards were,” Reppert said.

Restaurants ‘cautiously optimistic’ for city’s restored water supply

Eris Scheffer, founder of The Scheffer Group, owns The Original Vinnie’s Neighborhood Italian and Vinnie’s Neighborhood Italian in North and South Asheville, Jettie Rae’s Oyster House and Gan Shan West. He said it was crucial for the city that restaurants reopened soon after Helene.

“It certainly brings an immediate sense of joy and hope and opens up a clean pathway moving forward but I’m cautiously optimistic,” he said. “It seems a little too good to be true so that’s how we’re proceeding ― cautiously optimistic.”

In the week after Helene, Scheffer contracted a deal with a Texas-based water supply company to transport potable water to 18 participating restaurants including The Scheffer Group’s concepts, Chai Pani, Botiwalla, Cúrate, Chestnut, Pizza Mind, Plant, Pulp + Sprout Juice Bar and Vegan Café, Rendevous, Rocky’s Hot Chicken Shack, Tall John’s The Rhu and W.A.L.K., which has shared the abundant costs.

Scheffer said the total cost was $398,000 for potable water services.

Scheffer said his restaurants’ normal water bill from the city averaged $1,400 per month per location, which was worth the price of keeping the staff employed. He said an average of 1,200 gallons of water per day is used at each restaurant.

Miller said Luella’s used about 1,000 gallons of water per day and 2,000 pounds of water per week, costing about $5,000-$7,000 per week on potable water and ice. He said before Helene a typical water bill averaged $1,500 per two-month water bill cycle and ice wasn’t considered an expense.

“The plan is to keep your head down and open up and do your best to get foot traffic through the door,” Scheffer said.

Scheffer said customer traffic had declined about 64% across his restaurants, estimating a $8,000 revenue loss.

He said smaller businesses open for less time will likely have more difficulties covering the accrued costs.

Safe water practices in Asheville restaurants

Scheffer said he planned to use the sourced potable water until the weekend following the boil notice being lifted but will keep the tanks and pumps installed for another week or two in case additional service was needed at North Fork Reservoir and the water supply.

Miller said the two barbecue restaurant locations in North Asheville and Biltmore Park closed the day before the Sept. 27 storm. Biltmore Park reopened on Oct. 9 because the area had drinkable water in the water lines. The North Asheville site required more cleanup and reopened on Oct. 19.

He said Luella’s team would continue to use the 2,000 gallons of sourced water and keep the tank in place for days after the canceled notice.

“It’s exciting. It almost creates a little bit of closure from this storm situation ― at least one piece of it,” Miller said. “There’s never going to be 100% closure, but it’s one more mark in the sand to say we’re getting this behind us and rebuilding and that’s exciting, especially before Thanksgiving and the holidays.”

Restaurant owners call for additional financial aid

Bosch said the community has been fully supportive of the restaurant, allowing him to pay employees because the workers weren’t eligible for unemployment at the new business. He said he’s ineligible for a Small Business Administration disaster loan due to the newly opened status, too.

“We were empty, and nobody was here. I was like, ‘What are we going to do?’” Bosch said.

Bosch said he asked the community for support through social media which brought many locals in to dine, allowing the 12 workers employed before the storm to return.

“They need a job. They need to be able to support their families,” Bosch said.

Miller said insurance hadn’t covered storm-related expenses, but a Mountain BizWorks loan has been helpful.

“This has been the trouble for everyone. Where does the cash come from?” Miller said. “Yes, it’s been wonderful to have the support from the community in our restaurant but we’re doing what we can to keep our staff intact and in storm cleanup. It’s all an added expense.”

He said although there’s been a tourism decline in town, Luella’s dining rooms have sustained the customer volume it used to host in October and November thanks to locals.

Luella’s employs 35-45 workers at each of its restaurants, though a few have not returned for relocation or other reasons. He said new hires have come on board as the restaurant has had steady customer volumes, and continues to recruit.

He said having potable water has allowed them to answer to that growth and resume Thanksgiving Day meal catering orders.

Scheffer said he doesn’t want the good news of the lifted boil water notice to distract from the financial pain the restaurants have endured and that he wants the situation to stay at the forefront of the city and state leadership’s minds. He called for grants and other financial assistance, saying there would be a long-lasting financial impact on small businesses and entrepreneurs that could go on for years.

“I don’t want to be forgotten for the huge financial burden we all have taken on for making sure this city didn’t die and stayed open and feeding people and keeping our businesses going because it would have been disastrous for the city, especially if we all shuttered our doors on people,” Scheffer said.

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Tiana Kennell is the food and dining reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. She is a graduate of Michigan State University and covered the arts, entertainment and hospitality in Louisiana for several years. Email her at [email protected] or follow her on Instagram @PrincessOfPage.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville drinkable water: Restaurateurs ‘cautiously excited