Up To Date

Reopened Kansas City Restaurants Are Still Struggling To Survive

By Steve Kraske,

Published August 10, 2020 at 3:03 PM CDT

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Urban Cafe, located on Troost Avenue, is one of many local restaurants struggling to remain afloat. Co-owner Rashaun Clark said she asked for a PPP loan from the federal government, but never heard back on their application.

Restaurant owners are simultaneously dealing with employees testing positive for COVID-19 and less business than usual, and the experience of eating out doesn't provide the same feeling of camaraderie.

"I don't really have time to talk to people anymore, to have that sense of community with them," Heirloom Bakery co-owner Scott Meinke said, "which is really sad because that's about 50% of the restaurant — connecting with your customers."

Scott Meinke, co-owner of Heirloom Bakery
Rashaun Clark, co-owner of Urban Cafe

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Up To Date Talk Show Coronavirus restaurants Food & Drink Troost Avenue Brookside Organic food local food Local Business Kansas City Small Business Podcast

Steve Kraske

When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.

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Mackenzie Martin

Whether it’s something happening right now or something that happened 100 years ago, some stories don’t fit in the short few minutes of a newscast. As a podcast producer and reporter at KCUR Studios, I help investigate questions and local curiosities in a way that brings listeners along for adventures with plot twists and thought-provoking ideas. Sometimes there isn’t an easy answer in the end – but my hope is that we all leave with a greater understanding of the city we live in. Reach me at mackenzie@kcur.org.

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