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When the team behind the trendy all-day café and bar Short Stories on the Bowery decided to reopen in early July, they knew business would not be the same—and often unpredictable.
“We’re in a completely different reality than we were last year,” says Ashwin Deshmukh, a co-owner and general manager. “But our job is still to take care of people.”
Two weeks ago, Short Stories started selling pay-what-you-want vegan curry bowls on Wednesdays between 5-10pm to help out. It was the team’s response to the $600 federal weekly unemployment benefit bonus from the CARES Act expiring on July 31st.
“So many friends—young and old—in the service industry had a sigh of relief with the $600. It wasn’t lavish, but they could relax for once in their lives,” says Deshmukh. “But when it went away, we asked ourselves: ‘Why don’t we do something clear [to help]?’”
They sold 130 bowls the first week and slightly fewer last week—with the rain reducing foot traffic. Everyone from restaurant workers to protestors marching against police violence have been ordering the bowls of curry. Some customers are paying for other people’s meals, too, according to Deshmukh.
The pay-what-you-want curry—which is slated to be available through the winter and possibly permanently—is part of a new menu Short Stories has been rolling out under its head chef Jeanne Jordan, who took over the kitchen this summer. Those dishes include soft-boiled eggs (with pickles, XO sauce and radishes), fries (topped with herbs and served with romesco and lemon) and murraya shrimp (with polenta cakes, peppers, corn and a curry sauce).
Jordan’s curry is similar to a Japanese-style version that tends to have a more stew-like consistency, but she’s added her own touches with curry leaves, ginger and coconut milk. She cooks up different vegetables depending on the week, including donations from 10am Farms in New Hope, Pennsylvania.
But the curry bowls also have a personal connection for Jordan. She was receiving unemployment benefits in the beginning of the crisis when everything shut down. The weekly $600 checks from the federal government helped contribute toward rent, groceries and bills. As she puts it: “just so we could have the basics covered.”
“When it ended, I was really grateful I had a job lined up already,” says Jordan. “A lot of people aren’t that fortunate.”
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