A Montrose restaurant owner who is part of a class-action lawsuit suing CenterPoint Energy because of the recent power outages says the Houston food industry took a big hit when Hurricane Beryl knocked out power for days.
He believes another blackout could shut down businesses for good.
Right now, business is booming at the modern American restaurant, Riel, in Montrose. Last week, Chef Partner Ryan Lachaine says a near week-long power outage after Beryl nearly crushed them.
“We didn’t think it was going to be this bad,” Lachaine said. “You lose almost everything right? Your walk-in cooler is down, so your produce is done first, and the protein starts to go. We’re losing revenue of tens of thousands of dollars so far, and also my staff isn’t making any money either.”
Chris Shepherd, host of KPRC 2′s ‘Eat Like a Local’ and cofounder of Southern Smoke Foundation, a nonprofit that supports food and beverage workers when they need it most, says this recent power outage was especially impactful because restaurants in our area were already working to rebound from other recent setbacks.
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“With the derecho, a lot of restaurants were without power for multiple days on end, and then we back it up with the Fourth of July weekend that falls on a Thursday. Nobody really goes out to restaurants,” said Shepher. “And then we come down to Beryl which shut down restaurants again.”
Now, Riel is part of a class-action lawsuit recently filed by Houston attorney Tony Buzbee that involves several Houston and Galveston-area restaurants suing CenterPoint for claims of gross negligence and other violations of law.
“I think there’s got to be some accountability, like you know, we’re the fourth largest city in the [United] States and the energy capital of North America,” Lachaine said.
Beryl was only the second named storm the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. With months to go, Lachaine has concerns this or worse could happen again.
“It’s financially crippling. If something like this hits again, I think you’ll see a lot of places going down,” Lachaine said.
In addition to compensation, Lachaine hopes the lawsuit results in accountability and assurance that this won’t happen again.
Any food and beverage workers hoping to learn more about how to get help from Southern Smoke Foundation can learn more by clicking here.