My Restaurant Was Named One of New York City’s Best. Here’s Why It Closed.

The New York Times ^ | Dec. 28, 2024, 7:00 a.m. ET | Yannick Benjamin

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Last Saturday, I poured wine, greeted regulars and strangers and bused tables at Contento, the restaurant I co-owned in East Harlem, for the last time. After more than three years of service, during which The New York Times ranked us twice among the 100 Best Restaurants in New York City and the Michelin Guide gave me its sommelier award, I had to say goodbye to my talented staff and lifelong dream of owning a restaurant. The combination of inflation, rising crime that required us to pay for security guards and declining profits simply proved insurmountable.

I’m crushed that we had to close Contento. I have to admit I’m also relieved. Running a restaurant in 2024 meant taking no salary while working a full-time hospitality job elsewhere in order to afford private health insurance. This is the cruel math of owning a small business and being disabled in America.

My story is one small part of an ongoing struggle for restaurant workers and culinary culture across New York City and the country. If you’re wondering why you so rarely see a disabled person like myself on a wheelchair on the floor of your favorite restaurant, why menu prices seem so high or why service feels uneven nearly five years after the pandemic began, the American health care system deserves much of the blame. If that sounds melodramatic, ask your favorite server.

It has always been difficult to sustain a career in hospitality, but brief rumblings of progress during the early days of the pandemic brought us some hope. In 2020, when the true value of essential workers and the inequities they faced finally pierced the public consciousness, it seemed like we were on the brink of major change.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

I bet he'll still vote Democrat.

[BobL]

“I bet he’ll still vote Democrat.”

He opened the place 3 years ago, when NY City was a cesspool, and only getting cessier. He’s not just a Democrat, he’s an IDIOT Democrat, and now his family will pay the price...but given his picture, I doubt there’s much of a family.

[T.B. Yoits]

He was supposed to open a restaurant in New York City to launder money, not to make a profit.

[ifinnegan]

“ The combination of inflation, rising crime”

Stolen elections and illegitimate presidents have consequences.

[Brian Griffin]

The restaurant business has always been tough.

Add in high mandated costs such as wages and health care benefits and high food costs caused by fossil fuel-hating fools, and it is increasingly just too much.

[Retain Mike]

Democrat or IDIOT Democrat. Sometimes I wonder if it is now possible to tell a difference.

[llevrok]

Add in high mandated costs such as wages and health care benefits and high food costs caused by fossil fuel-hating fools, and it is increasingly just too much.

All politics aside mentioned above, you are right.

[cgbg]

Yeah—in many cases the variation of the old joke...

Q. “How do you become a millionaire?”

A. “Start with two million and open a restaurant.”

They eat cash.

[DarrellZero]

Along with everything that has been said, I would submit that he NYC restaurant business is make-believe in that the prices they charge would be unsustainable almost anywhere else.

People outside of big cities will usually just eat at home rather than pay $100 for a meal, even if they can afford to.

[neverevergiveup]

Opening a restaurant in a city run by Democrats, and complaining about a health care system that has been ruined by Democrats.

[SauronOfMordor]

A friend of mine decided it would be great to open a restaurant. Closed within 2 months.

I would say, if you haven’t apprenticed running a successful restaurant, don’t even think about it.

[Mark]

But by closing, top politicians won’t get their free meals.

[No name given]

They never learn, do they.

[No name given]

If there ever was even a difference to begin with.

[No name given]

He’s too ignorant and stupid to see the irony.

[paint_your_wagon]

“...when the true value of essential workers and the inequities they faced finally pierced the public consciousness...”

Equity and its evil twin inequity are the root cause of the problem.

I wonder if the diversity of his clientel was limited by his security team. A lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion may have led to his failure.

[Ronaldus Magnus III]

No Worries! The Hussein/Biden Regime will just take over the restaurant, provide a 0% interest “loan” to the up and coming, fantastic organization that comes with its own security. This organization has been branching out to many countries, many US cities, with a proven business model.

Yes, none other than those darlings from Venezuela.... Tren De Aragua!

Their menu should be very interesting.

[Cold_Red_Steel]

A friend of mine decided it would be great to open a restaurant. Closed within 2 months.

---

My wife considered opening a German restaurant in our area. I reminded her that owning a business, especially a restaurant, means you are committed and bound tightly to it. The business defines your life. If you ever want to take any extended time off, you had better have an employee you can trust without any reservations.

[Rockingham]

Not necessarily. Getting mugged by reality is often the first step that sets Democrats on the road to becoming Republican. Years ago, I met a former SDS member who suddenly became a rabid Republican. He had to drop out of college for several years after his girlfriend became pregnant and he had to get a full time job to support his soon to be wife and infant son. He was shocked by his first paycheck at what the government took in taxes and the lot.

[smokingfrog]

Obamacare fixed everything, I’m told. This should not be an issue. This guy could not have picked a worse time or place to start a new restaurant. All the awards and high ratings mean nothing if the business model is not sustainable.