GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan — The boil water advisory in Grand Rapids has impacted a number of local businesses. Amid the advisory, safety for employees and customers poses a concern. Business owners of a restaurant and brewery said the advisory has caused some challenges for their operations. We spoke to one business that was very disappointed in the impact the advisory had on them Monday.
“The water boil notice severely impacted us causing us to push our grand opening date back that we had the community all excited for,” Pita Way owner Clint Penokie said.
Penokie says he and his team were turnkey ready for Pita Way’s grand opening on East Beltline near Knapp Street. The business was set to open Monday. However, that all changed when he received the boil water advisory from the city.
“We posted on social media that we can't open due to the notice and we want to be safe to the public,” Penokie said. "We still had many people come to the door trying to get that delicious food and we had to turn them away.”
11 minutes away at City Built Brewing Company, founder Edwin Collazo said he expects to see fewer customers on their usually busy Monday because of the boil water advisory but decided to stay open for business.
“We're just doing the best that we can to keep patrons safe, keep our staff safe and also be open and continue business,” Collazo said.
Collazo posted a photo on social media hugging his water tank saying it allows him to boil the water and stay open. His post received tons of support from his loyal customers. In light of the boil water advisory, he was happy to find humor despite some challenges.
Back at Pita Way, Penokie said he’s being positive about the opening setback and looks forward to asking his customers the Mediterranean restaurant’s slogan: “Are you ready for something delicious?”
“The magic is still happening. We’re going to be opening up Wednesday or Thursday and we're ready to serve you guys some excellent food,” Penokie said. "Everybody comes in as a family and I couldn't do this work without everybody. We are gearing up and getting ready to open and open with a bang.”
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