Ko-an, Soca owners delay reopening, increase hourly pay and discourage tipping
Owners of two restaurants in Raleigh and Cary are delaying their reopenings and changing how they plan to pay their staff.
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Soca was the first restaurant associated with COVID-19 in Wake County. During the last week in February, a diner who ate there tested positive for the virus.
Both Ko-an and Soca got through the pandemic by turning to online pick-up or delivery orders. "It literally saved our business," said Ko-an chef Drew Smith.
Smith hopes to attract more customers to Ko-an’s southeast Asian cuisine, which he says is different from other Asian dishes. "It’s not heavy and really spicy. It’s more fresh and citrus-y," said Smith, who is also committed to including more locally-sourced produce in the dishes on his menu.
Soca, located near Cameron Village, offers a Latin American menu.
Both restaurants will remain closed for a few weeks as they plan and prepare for the re-opening in mid-June.
Social distancing means Ko-an will only fill about 30% of its 340-seat space. Some people will dine in a more private setting between partitions.
The Ko-an bar will remain closed.
"You can socially distance this way (the length of the bar) but not to the bartender themselves," explained Smith, indicating that the bar stools are still too close to the servers.
A big change at both restaurants is that staff will be paid an hourly wage of $15 an hour and will earn benefits. The current minimum wage in North Carolina is $7.25 per hour.
The management team hopes increasing compensation will make servers less reliant on the good will of guests or on a full restaurant for their income. If tips are received, they will be accepted and then divided among the staff.
"I think it’s just time for this archaic system of tips and wages to end," Smith said. "It’s just not fair, and it’s the only place in the world that does it."
With the well-publicized case of COVID-19 linked to Soca, Smith said it is all the more important for both restaurants to have a fresh start.
"We want to make sure it’s 100% safe and we’re 100% doing it the right way before we invite people back into our home," he said.
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