Recent unusual weather affects outdoor restaurants in the area and how they have made changes to maximize profits
Staff Writer
Early in February, Fremont was hit with the most rainfall it has seen in the last 12 months, totalling about 3.8 inches of rainfall. Due to the usually dry climate of northern California, many restaurants and businesses in the area rely on outdoor seating, meaning that this unforeseen rainfall may have significantly harmed business.
Miguel Hernandez, who works at a taco truck on Thornton Avenue, said, “The recent influx in rain dropped our usual customer count to about three to four orders an hour from our normal count of around ten customers an hour. While the number eventually returned to its original number, this hurt business for about three days to a week and we had some food we had to throw out as it was not used.”
Local smashburger truck, The Burger Shop, faced a similar decrease in customers. “We’ve had slow days due to weather in the past but not much like this past week’s stretch of consistent rain. This week we’ve tried to be more conservative with inventory. Typically, we stock up on supplies in anticipation of busier days, but with the rain keeping customers away, we’ve reduced the amount we purchase to avoid waste. But hopefully once it clears up we’ll be back to our regular business,” said The Burger Shop employee Mo Aziz.
As they were unsure whether or not the rain would continue, some restaurants have considered temporarily relocating. “I have thought about it, but honestly, this location is pretty hard to beat. The foot traffic is solid for a suburban city and moving the truck elsewhere would mean starting from scratch in terms of building up a customer base. I’ve only been working here for the past eight months but I could even notice that the business model is based on returning customers. It’s more practical for us to stick around here for now and ride out the weather,” said Hernandez.
“So far, staying put has been the best choice. We’ve seen a few customers brave the rain, and our regulars are always supportive. I’m hopeful that once the rain stops, business will pick back up to normal levels though,” said Aziz.
Making the decision to move would have also been incredibly difficult for both restaurants due to the fact that they had each been parked there for a minimum of two years and base their business models and inventory purchases off their area. As both restaurants are mobile, they face more drastic effects due to heavy rain than seen with brick-and-mortar restaurants.
Winter storms can drive away customers and discourage foot traffic, posing significant challenges for outdoor and mobile business (Art Credit: Ivan Chu (11)).
Eagle Era 
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