Their neighborhood restaurant & cafe was about to have its second anniversary when the pandemic hit. “Literally, we were in the process of planning our party for the week after we were shut down.” Instead Rachel and Nate spent that time figuring out what the next month (or longer) would look like, if there would be anything at all. They decided to switch to a non-profit model to serve the needs of the moment, at least until it seemed like a good idea to reopen for profit.

Even after they reopened, pared down to daytime service a few days a week, by election season, Gertie was known to the neighborhood as a place to get involved. Through R.A.D., a rallying organization they started, which stands for Restaurants Advocating for Democracy, Gertie hosted weekly phone banking, bake sales, and “block parties for change” that raised over $9K for Fair Fight Action. When it was time, you could watch the debates from their open street, so you wouldn’t have to scream at a screen alone.

How did you process the shutdown?

Rachel Jackson: We were not going to survive unless we figured out a way to do something. Nate decided to try to look into getting grant funding to start making meals for people who need them. We realized that all of our employees were furloughed. All of our friends who worked in restaurants were furloughed. This was an opportunity for us to not only keep our space open but also provide much needed assistance for people who were suddenly out of a job, facing a pandemic, and did not have any insurance. We made meals first just for out-of-work hospitality employees and then for City Harvest, who we’re still working with now five days a week. And it seems like that’s going to be a part of our lifeblood forever. 

How much volume are you able to produce?

RJ: It depends. As much as we can. We’re usually doing about a thousand meals a week for City Harvest. Obviously we’d like to do more, but now that we’re open, we also have to spend time on that as well.

How was last summer?

RJ: We had such a hard time because our street runs between Marcy and Roebling, which was supposed to be closed off as part of the Open Streets program, but nobody came to enforce it. We had to push the barriers ourselves and police the street closure. We had people who fully drove right through the barriers. It was a real problem. We’re also right by the BQE, so we have these massive tractor trailers driving through, and 18-wheeler trucks trying to make these tight turns. 

Have you been visited by any inspectors since March, DOH or SLA?

RJ: I think it was February, maybe March even. We got a piece of paper taped to our door, saying that we were in violation of the Department of Transportation because our front patio wasn’t up to winter standards. This was pretty much at the end of winter. We had to spend an additional $500 to $600 to make ourselves compliant for blizzards, which was infuriating. 

In the beginning, I remember DOT saying they were going to make reopening as easy as possible for small businesses. 

RJ: No, no, no. They said they were going to take away our liquor license if we didn’t become compliant in, like, a week. If they’re threatening to take away your liquor license, you don’t really have a choice. It’s basically telling me that I can’t operate. We didn’t inherit one from the previous business, so of course we’re going to do whatever we can to keep it. We can’t go through the application process again. 

What about the DOH? 

RJ: We got inspected twice, both early in the pandemic. They were the most lenient inspections I’ve ever seen with the DOH. They were totally chill, totally understanding of every situation. It wasn’t a normal DOH inspection. 

What is your normal relationship with the DOH?

RJ: Probably very similar to anyone else’s. Constant, constant panic and anxiety as soon as they walk in the door, and you can assess whether they’re going to be a hard-ass or they’re going to let you explain yourself a little bit. So we come in an hour early. We do a full walk-through. We temp things ourselves. We hope they come either as we’re opening or right after we open, so we don’t actually have to interrupt service, or worry that something was left out because we got busy. But it’s terrifying and not at all indicative of how a restaurant is actually run. It’s basically an exercise in how quickly you can clean stuff up for a person who’s not familiar at all with what you’re doing. 

How would you change your relationship with the DOH?

RJ: I think there’s a huge disconnect between actual operators and DOH. I was lucky enough in one of my first jobs to have a consultant, who did the walk-through with us every single day during inspection windows. If I hadn’t had that, I would’ve been so clueless about what the expectations were. But even so, every restaurant is different. Every single person who owns a restaurant is guessing what we’re going to be asked about. But the fact of the matter is, every single inspector I’ve had has focused on something different. I could work at a restaurant for five years, and the fifth year, one inspector is going to point out a pipe that nobody else has ever had a problem with. If there was any semblance of consistency, it would make things much easier.

It was insane before, and it will go back to being insane. There’s also that crazy thing where if one restaurant gets inspected, they’ll run to all the restaurants in the neighborhood, like “DOH is at our place!” It’s a game. But it’s a game that really costs restaurants so much. I will say that I am so grateful that this last year was not that way.

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Rachel Jackson is the general manager, and Nate Adler is founder, of Gertie (357 Grand St, Brooklyn, NY 11211)