From Eater New York: Andrea Strong × Andrew Rigie Interview
From Eater New York’s Andrea Strong interview with the NYC Hospitality Alliance’s Andrew Rigie:
Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral win is likely to change the city in many ways to come, with policies aimed at making the city more affordable. But it’s not just the residents who are feeling the increased cost of living in New York. Many of the city’s independent restaurants are in crisis, with closures mounting due to rising costs of rent, labor, food, deliveries, and apps.
The challenges could be exacerbated if the $30 minimum wage gets passed, a policy change nearly everyone in the industry says will be a death knell for neighborhood restaurants. The mayor clearly has a soft spot for mom-and-pops, hanging out at spots like Kabab King in Jackson Heights. But his favorite restaurants are in danger if restaurants don’t get breaks in the cost of business.
To get a sense of what the NYC restaurant community needs from the new administration, I sat down with Andrew Rigie, the executive director of the New York City Hospitality Alliance, one of the industry’s most powerful advocacy groups, to lay out what Mayor Mamdani can do to keep our restaurants not just surviving, but thriving.
