Amid Financial Struggle, Plymouth Restaurant Finds Way to Give Back
Restaurants will have to wait a little while longer to open for indoor dining. On Wednesday, Governor Tim Walz extended the executive order, largely limiting many restaurants to takeout and curbside pickup until January 11th.
The executive did allow outdoor dining to resume at 50% capacity, which Walz said was more to help a small number of microbreweries that have outdoor tents set up for Minnesota winters.
“I know we’re in Minnesota and I know it’s the middle of December,” Walz said.
A Plymouth restaurant owner agrees with the COVID-19 protections, although she says it’s hurting business.
Lucky Street in Plymouth is known for its sushi and Asian fusion dishes. For two years in a row, it was named best Asian restaurant in Plymouth by the Sun Media Reader’s Choice Award.
Lucky Street in Plymouth lost 40 percent of business during pandemic.
However, the woks at Lucky Street aren’t as sizzling as before the pandemic. The empty dining room is a reminder of the business it once had.
“Is business down? Absolutely,” said Lucky Street owner Lisa Edevold. “When the governor reopened dine-in this past summer, we found that people were very reluctant to come in.”
The business also did a lot of catering for businesses in Plymouth and the surrounding area, but that stopped with people working from home.
“Forty percent of our revenue gone in one blink of an eye,” Edevold said.
And just when things started to look bleak, Lucky Street got a bit of magic. Customers in the neighborhood increasingly showed up to support them, ordering their favorite Thai foods for takeout or curbside pickup.
“It’s just so heartwarming to see them coming out and making sure that we’re okay. Coming in with their dollars, throwing big dollars, not just dollar bills, like 10 and 20s in our tip jars,” explained Edevold.
Plymouth Restaurant Donates Portion Of Proceeds To Schools
The restaurant is reciprocating that love and support by giving back to the community. Lucky Street started fundraising for each of the area’s elementary schools by donating a portion of the proceeds. This Thursday and Friday, 15 percent of sales will go to the nonprofit group Interfaith Outreach.
Meanwhile, owner Edevold is optimistic about the future of Lucky Street.
“The governor is going to continue the shutdown, and I’m in support of that because I think we need that. It’s going to hurt our business, but we’re going to be okay. “
