Upstate restaurants, without power after Helene, feed community while facing uphill battle

After nearly a week without power at Runway Cafe , burgers and hotdogs were still being served from blacktop grills to the first responders, line crews and affected community members.

The menu Thursday was not for profit but for preference. Lem Winesett, owner of the restaurant near Greenville's downtown airport district, worked alongside hundreds of volunteers and Happy Helicopter Tours to feed without charge those in attendance while also hosting a drive that sends non-perishable foods, hygiene items and more to Western North Carolina for post-Tropial Storm Helene support.

Since Sept. 27, Winesett estimates his restaurant has lost nearly 60% of its food supply. He is concerned about the financial stability of workers from shifts missed due to Helene and, of course, when power will be restored.

"Our problems aren't that big compared to a lot of people, especially in Asheville, up the mountains," Winslett said. "Just because I've closed my restaurant for a week and am losing money, there's people whose lives have been washed away. I don't think anybody expected to have damage like this."

The storm occurred just ahead of the Warbirds Aviation Show , one of Runway Cafe's biggest weekends of the year, which could put Runway Cafe in an unbearable deficit. Still, Winesett will continue to help those around him.

"We bank on that event, and it's been canceled," he said. "But there are so many people with much worse conditions."

MORE: Latest news on grocery stores, restaurants open in Upstate after Hurricane Helene

Greenville area restauranteurs speak to how Helene will affect local food and dining industry

On Thursday, the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce announced that Upstate-based workers and small-business owners could be eligible for Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) funds.

For local owners and workers alike, those funds — and a timely turnaround on their delivery after approval —could determine whether the restaurants survive.

"The food business is a day-to-day business," said Chef Dayna Lee-Márquez, owner of Comal 864 . "Loss of wages and food — it's a race against the clock that many restaurant owners are facing in areas affected by Helene."

Her West Greenville restaurant neighbor agreed.

"I'm not sure how smaller restaurants will recover from this storm. It's going to be a battle to stay in business," said Jim Cavanos, owner of The Anchorage and Mr. Crisp in Greenville. "While many are able to recoup funds through insurance, those dollars don't come immediately, so that's where the challenge may come."

Cavanos and Lee-Márquez, like Winesett, opened the parking lots of their businesses to cook for and aid the community in the days after the storm, despite their locations' lack of power.

"The small local restaurant operator, day-in-and-day-out, living week-to-week, it's tough," said Carl Sobocinski, owner of Table 301 . "In these tough times, our local residents can think about visiting our small local restaurant operators and go and support them with your dining dollars. Go buy a gift card or two and save it for when they are back in business.”

Other suggestions from the restauranteurs to support local businesses and restaurants would be to donate generators and ice, offer refrigerator space and even volunteer as these smaller establishments rebuild after Helene.

MORE: Road closures in Greenville County: Avoid these areas as storm cleanup continues

What insurance and restaurant assistance agencies suggest

While many restaurant owners wait for normalcy, insurance claims will be piling and pending. The realization of being underinsured or confusion about coverage plans could affect how quickly businesses return, according to Mari Mena, owner of M&M Specialty Risk in Houston.

Her profession specializes in assessing insurance claims during disaster recovery, including the recent Maui fires , Hurricane Beryl of 2024, and more.

"One of the big things is not to confuse a windstorm event with flood damage, which is caused by rising water," said Mena, owner of M&M Specialty Risk of Houston. "Your insurance needs to grow as your business grows, so the main concern now should be on the staff members."

Mena also suggests restaurant owners to check their business income coverage or business interruption coverage. That policy would help with payroll and lease/rent payments.

Within one week after Tropical Storm Helene, Southern Smoke Foundation confirmed it received more than 1,100 applications for aid through their non-profit agency, which provides emergency grants to food and beverage workers impacted by disaster.

"We expect that number to grow tremendously once power is fully restored in the storm areas," said Lindsey Brown, executive director of SSF. "So many food and beverage workers live paycheck-to-paycheck, so we try to help as quickly as we can."

Brown anticipates Southern Smoke payouts to begin Oct. 14, with single workers to receive $1,000 in relief and married workers to receive $1,200, once qualified and chosen.

"Regardless of the outcome of insurance and power restoration, I'm still going to try my best to give back to our community," said Winsett of Runway Cafe. "It's the least I can do."

For more information on Helene Relief, visit: https://southernsmoke.org, https://thegivingkitchen.org and also https://fema.gov

– A.J. Jackson covers the food & dining scene, along with arts, entertainment and downtown culture for The Greenville News. Contact him by email at ajackson@gannett.com, and follow him on X (formally Twitter) @ajhappened. This coverage is only possible with support from our readers. Sign up today for a digital subscription .

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Upstate restaurants, without power after Helene, feed community while facing uphill battle