SYRACUSE — As the dogwoods bloomed, outdoor seating returned to sidewalks outside restaurants and bars in Syracuse. According to statistics from the City of Syracuse, some 35 businesses had permission to add outdoor seating, creating space for 831 more customers. Giovanni Giardina, co-owner of The Fish Friar on East Genesee Street in the city, says […]
SYRACUSE — As the dogwoods bloomed, outdoor seating returned to sidewalks outside restaurants and bars in Syracuse.
According to statistics from the City of Syracuse, some 35 businesses had permission to add outdoor seating, creating space for 831 more customers.
Giovanni Giardina, co-owner of The Fish Friar on East Genesee Street in the city, says his restaurant has a permit for outdoor seating for 24 diners. “It’s the best,” he says, of outdoor dining.
Jennifer Walls, co-owner of Sweet Praxis, says her bake shop has outdoor seating for about 30 people. She says she has no data on whether the seats mean more business. However, Walls notes that it provides visibility. “It just shows customers that you’re open.”
Businesses can’t just put tables and chairs anywhere, explains Merike Treier, executive director of the Downtown Committee of Syracuse. “Any restaurant that has outdoor seating has to have a café permit approved by the City of Syracuse.”
Seats and tables need to be set up so pedestrians can pass by, she says, and there has to be some sort of separation between the dining space and the rest of the sidewalk.
Some places put up small fences, others install posts connected by chains, she says. In Hanover Square, one restaurant uses planter boxes.
Treier agrees with Walls that outdoor seating makes Syracuse restaurants more visible — and not just to diners.
Restaurant owners notice the success their neighbors are having with outside seating, she says. They respond by adding their own outdoor seating. “It helps them be competitive.”
Treier says it’s not just outdoor seating that makes restaurants more visible in the area right now, but also the quantity of eateries. “We have more restaurants than we used to have,” she says.
The restaurants are expanding to serve the growing number of people living downtown, she says, “and catering to the 29,000 employees who work downtown.”
For many workers who have been cooped up for months, eating lunch or dinner outside is about more than eating, she says. “It’s the ability to get outside.”
Sitting outside is about even more than being out of doors, she adds. “It lets people be more immersed in the downtown experience.”