Valley restaurants take a hit to outdoor dining due to strong winds

With outdoor dining now the only option for customers eating out, a dip in temperature or strong winds take a big toll on restaurants' business.

As winds gusted more than 50 miles per hour through parts of the valley Monday, the strongest Santa Ana wind event of the fire season so far caused a sharp decline in customers to the El Paseo shopping district.

"It has really affected us – a lot of people are asking more for to go orders," said Cristian Cruz at Fresh Agave Mexican Bar & Grill.

Laurie Tetreault and her husband Steve were two of the only people of the evening to take advantage of Lupine Plaza, Palm Desert's new outdoor dining area.

"I'm just so grateful that it's cooled off enough where we can actually sit outside, which is wonderful," Laurie Tetreault said. "But then today's wind storm kind of made things a little bit difficult."

"It's always more convenient to be dining inside certainly a lot of times more comfortable," Steve Tetreault said. "We think it's going to be tough again when the cold season comes again and it starts to rain."

As businesses brace against dining restrictions and reduced revenues, Fresh Agave is gearing up for colder months ahead.

"We're expecting more heaters to come tomorrow for this cold weather that is coming up," Cruz said. "We're hoping to give a pleasant service to our customers.​"

"During these times, hopefully we can keep our local businesses going it's so important," Laurie Tetreault said.

Indoor dining is expected to remain shut down for at least another 15 days.

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