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A lifeline for fast-food outlets: the drive-through.
Cars waiting at a Popeyes drive-through in Stroudsburg, Pa.Credit...Leah Frances for The New York Times
For decades, the fast-food drive-through has been a greasy symbol of Americana, a roadside ritual for millions of travelers with a hankering for burgers and fries.
Now, the drive-through, with its brightly colored signage and ketchup-stained paper bags, has taken on a new importance in the age of social distancing.
Over the last month and a half, the pandemic has forced small, independent restaurants to close and Michelin star chefs to experiment with takeout. But the nation’s drive-throughs have continued to churn out orders, providing a financial reprieve for chains like McDonald’s and Burger King even as fast-food workers have become increasingly concerned about the threat of infection.
While restaurant dining rooms sit empty, many people have started treating drive-throughs like grocery stores, making only occasional trips but placing larger orders. Popeyes has introduced “family bundles” to capitalize on the demand for bigger meals. Taco Bell is offering a promotion — free Doritos Locos Tacos on Tuesdays — that has increased traffic at some of its drive-throughs, overwhelming employees. And dine-in chains like Texas Roadhouse have converted empty parking lots into temporary drive-through lanes.
“For many restaurants,” said Jonathan Maze, the executive editor of Restaurant Business Magazine, “it’s an absolute savior.”
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Lawsuits mount as lockdowns squeeze businesses.
A protest outside Michigan’s House of Representatives on Thursday.Credit...Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal, via Associated Press
The timing and the extent of lockdown restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus have prompted a raft of lawsuits across the United States.
All manner of rights are being asserted. Individual rights. Commercial rights. Free speech rights. Property rights. A mariachi band is suing to get back to work.
“The constitutional and other themes are profound across the board,” said James Hodge, the director of the Center for Public Health Law and Policy at Arizona State University. “It really is becoming quite a resistance across the country to what has been the most profound use of public health power in this century.”
Initially, in March, there was a certain consensus, grudging at times, that the “police powers” granted to states gave them broad authority to impose measures to protect the public health. As stay-at-home orders stretched from weeks into months, however, those powers are being scrutinized and questioned.
Butzel Long, a suburban Detroit law firm, filed a federal case in the Western District of Michigan on behalf of five businesses seeking to reopen. “The courts really need to get involved to decide how far can a governor’s emergency authority extend,” said Daniel McCarthy, the lead lawyer.
In Los Angeles, a diverse group of small businesses including a gondola service and a pet grooming spa have sued in federal court. “We cannot keep up with the number of people who are basically crippled by this and do not understand it,” said their lawyer, Mark J. Geragos.
Cars waiting at a Popeyes drive-through in Stroudsburg, Pa.Credit...Leah Frances for The New York Times
For decades, the fast-food drive-through has been a greasy symbol of Americana, a roadside ritual for millions of travelers with a hankering for burgers and fries.
Now, the drive-through, with its brightly colored signage and ketchup-stained paper bags, has taken on a new importance in the age of social distancing.
Over the last month and a half, the pandemic has forced small, independent restaurants to close and Michelin star chefs to experiment with takeout. But the nation’s drive-throughs have continued to churn out orders, providing a financial reprieve for chains like McDonald’s and Burger King even as fast-food workers have become increasingly concerned about the threat of infection.
While restaurant dining rooms sit empty, many people have started treating drive-throughs like grocery stores, making only occasional trips but placing larger orders. Popeyes has introduced “family bundles” to capitalize on the demand for bigger meals. Taco Bell is offering a promotion — free Doritos Locos Tacos on Tuesdays — that has increased traffic at some of its drive-throughs, overwhelming employees. And dine-in chains like Texas Roadhouse have converted empty parking lots into temporary drive-through lanes.
“For many restaurants,” said Jonathan Maze, the executive editor of Restaurant Business Magazine, “it’s an absolute savior.”
.................
Lawsuits mount as lockdowns squeeze businesses.
A protest outside Michigan’s House of Representatives on Thursday.Credit...Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal, via Associated Press
The timing and the extent of lockdown restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus have prompted a raft of lawsuits across the United States.
All manner of rights are being asserted. Individual rights. Commercial rights. Free speech rights. Property rights. A mariachi band is suing to get back to work.
“The constitutional and other themes are profound across the board,” said James Hodge, the director of the Center for Public Health Law and Policy at Arizona State University. “It really is becoming quite a resistance across the country to what has been the most profound use of public health power in this century.”
Initially, in March, there was a certain consensus, grudging at times, that the “police powers” granted to states gave them broad authority to impose measures to protect the public health. As stay-at-home orders stretched from weeks into months, however, those powers are being scrutinized and questioned.
Butzel Long, a suburban Detroit law firm, filed a federal case in the Western District of Michigan on behalf of five businesses seeking to reopen. “The courts really need to get involved to decide how far can a governor’s emergency authority extend,” said Daniel McCarthy, the lead lawyer.
In Los Angeles, a diverse group of small businesses including a gondola service and a pet grooming spa have sued in federal court. “We cannot keep up with the number of people who are basically crippled by this and do not understand it,” said their lawyer, Mark J. Geragos.