Lest you think that Nashville’s restaurant community has just been sitting around licking their collective wounds and developing plans for a Nashville Hot Chicken delivery service (a sketchy business plan in these times of uncertain toilet paper availability), here's a bit of news: Hospitality workers have been scrambling behind the scenes to quickly put together a coalition of chefs and restaurant owners to present a unified front to protect the industry and its employees at the local, state and federal levels.

The organization is named Tennessee Action for Hospitality and was born out of a plaintive text from a Nashville chef late Monday night to about 20 of his friends in the industry. In the text chain, there was a minimum of self-pity and a tremendous amount of energy to find a way to band together and put a message in front of legislators — a message about how important the hospitality industry is and how much it is hurting. Overnight, the group of chefs grew to include restaurateurs and other friends of the industry from around the state. The chain quickly grew too big to communicate efficiently, and a conference call was scheduled for Tuesday, March 17, to discuss actionable plans.

Connections were leveraged to include some heavy hitters in and out of the industry to advise the group how best to make an impact in a short time — especially since the state legislature is moving rapidly toward approving a budget by this weekend, and the hospitality industry did not want to miss that train.

Different members of the original text took on jobs ranging from public relations and graphics assistance to outreach to chefs across the state and figuring out a list of allies who could help spread the message. In a remarkably short time, Tennessee Action for Hospitality has drafted this letter, which they are distributing across the state:

We are a group of independent restaurant owners, hourly workers and chefs who work hard daily to provide Tennessee one of the most dynamic hospitality industries in the world - one that is attracting global attention. We contribute to the well-being of our community, support our thriving economy and, in general, exhibit a dedicated and unparalleled commitment to our various cities that goes above and beyond “cash-flow” and “hospitality”. We are citizens who work hard to build, connect and provide. Over the last several weeks, despite major natural disasters in Nashville and the rapidly changing face of a pandemic that none of us could have prepared for, we have stood strong to collectively serve our community through it all, with no asks and no needs. We are grateful for the thousands of guests and neighbors who have come out to support us in our efforts, either through aide or patronage. There is truly no state greater than Tennessee when it comes to community commitments and we are so proud to be amongst our fellow dedicated citizens. While we are thankful and proud, it is now time to make hard decisions - decisions we are willing to make to keep our communities safe. As owners, it is time for us to step up to make the hard decision to put the welfare and health of our customers and workers first. This will come at a great and devastating financial cost to us as hourly workers, tipped workers, and small business owners - generally, to us as an industry at large. We are most concerned about our workforce, whose livelihoods and immediate welfare are at risk. We can not do this without help. Our industry will not survive without immediate and definitive assistance and bold moves from our elected officials. Governor, in order to do what we believe is right - moving toward full closure for our businesses - we are being put in a deeply vulnerable state and it is paramount that we communicate our needs if we are to survive this catastrophic time. This call to action comes with great urgency and trust in the process. We know you will meet us here and we aim to communicate clearly what is needed: ● Immediate emergency unemployment benefits for all hourly and salaried workers furloughed during this crisis. We need a direct lifeline for our workers with no waiting period. ● Ensure 75% pay for unemployment. ● Eliminate payroll tax immediately. ● Support in our call for rent and loan abatement for workers and restaurants impacted. ● Requiring insurance companies to cover loss of revenue. ● Abating sales tax and LBD tax payments. ● A cash stimulus package. ● Loosen restrictions on alcohol sales. This is a vital moment for our state and industry workers, Governor. We ask that you help us in protecting our workers and our chefs and our industry at large. The need is immediate and the action required should be swift. As our elected official, we beseech you to move quickly alongside us to lessen the damages we foresee as imminent. We trust that you will help us make these bold moves for those in need in their immediate time of need, before it is too late to rectify. Sincerely, The chefs, restaurant owners & workers of Tennessee TN Action for Hospitality

The letter is signed by a host of your favorite chefs, and now they need your help. If you want to see a viable restaurant industry emerge on the other side of this period of crisis, it’s important that this message emerges as an important priority for the citizens of Tennessee. While the initiative started out in Nashville, it has expanded to resonate in big cities and small towns across the state.

Chefs have asked all their suppliers to help spread the word because the hospitality industry impacts so many aspects of the economy beyond just restaurants. The same food, wine and spirits distributors that deliver to bars and restaurants also provide the inventory and logistics for retail grocery and liquor stores, so the healthier these adjunct businesses can remain, the more stable our very food supply will be. Musicians, linen suppliers, insurance companies, delivery services, etc. — they all depend on restaurants and bars remaining viable businesses for a significant portion of their livelihoods.

For more information about Tennessee Action for Hospitality, visit TNActionForHospitality.com, which is launching today. To contact the group directly, email actionforhospitality@gmail.com. To keep up to date with the group and help share its messages within your own social circles, follow them on Instagram, and Facebook. But most importantly, continue to support the local restaurants you love in whatever way you feel comfortable doing. Order carryout, buy their merch and their gift cards, or just tell them you're thinking about them. Think about how many times you've been at some charity event, and there were always restaurants willing to step up and feed people, offer gift cards for silent auctions or host meals in their establishments. They've always been here for the community in times of need, and they really, really need our love and support right now and for the foreseeable future!

#CarryOutandCarryOn