"No more upside down chairs": celebrity chefs ask Rodríguez Larreta to open restaurants

08/25/2020 - 6:31

• Clarín.com
• Gourmet

With the phrase and the hashtag "No more #sillasalreves "On social networks and a petition through the Change.org platform, representatives of the gastronomic industry of the City of Buenos Aires launched a campaign last Saturday to request the reopening of bars and restaurants. 

The claim has already obtained more than  75 thousand signatures in adhesion to the petition addressed to Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, Head of Government of the city, Diego Santilli (vice chief) and Felipe Miguel (Buenos Aires chief of Cabinet), as well as representatives of the Executive Branch and National and provincial legislature, such as Máximo Kirchner, Matías Kulfas, Augusto Costa and Santiago Cafiero.

" Argentina's gastronomic sector is in danger of extinction . While the country loses 20% of its work, the sector loses 75% since the beginning of the pandemic. Every day that passes 90 gastronomic establishments are forced to close, without power face your commitments. " Thus begins the text with which the order is argued, replicated through Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Maru Botana is one of the cooks who joined the call for restaurants to open.

The campaign includes a video in which renowned chefs such as Francis Mallmann, Maru Botana, Christophe Krywonis, Fernando Trocca and Juliana López May , among others, participate, as well as gastronomic workers and businessmen such as Roberto García Moritán , one of the investors of the restaurants La Mar y Tanta (best known for being the husband of Pampita Ardohain).

The petition also states that " the tax level for activity in Argentina is the heaviest in the Latin American region and is surprisingly higher in comparison. 70% higher in labor cost per person compared to the levels in Chile and a 54% more in the total tax burden ".

That is why, in addition to requesting the reopening of the premises, the sector asks that measures be taken such as "half VAT, half Gross Income, reduction of contributions and contributions. For an indefinite time, immediately applicable and for everyone."

El Trapiche, in Palermo, one of the restaurants that closed permanently during the quarantine Photo: Germán García Adrasti

In that sense, this Monday, the deputy Juan F. Nosiglia announced that in the budget commission of the Buenos Aires Legislature a project had already been dispatched to nullify the collection of Gross Income from September to February "to help the recovery of the sector ".

"The project benefits restaurants, canteens, bars and fast food. The gastronomic sector is one of the most affected by the quarantine, it is about 10,000 premises that directly and indirectly employ 150,000 people, " Nosiglia posted on his account. Twitter

The petition on Change.org is headed by representatives of a diverse range of the sector, from small businesses to chains of bars, cafes and restaurants such as La Cabrera grill ,  Café Martínez, Antares, Tea Connection, Dashi, Green Eat, Kentucky and Havanna , among others.

A good one for the gastronomic of the City. We just dispatched a project by @MGuouman to the budget committee of @LegisCABA to nullify the collection of Gross Income from September to February to help the recovery of the sector. #NowLasPymes #SillasAlRevés

Despite the reach of consensus, Carlos Yanelli, president of the Argentine Chamber of Restaurants (AHRCC), warned that not everyone in the gastronomic sector agrees with the request. "There are those who do not want to open now without the approval of the authorities. Since it will take time for people to regain confidence and sit at a table," he said.

Another of the internal debates is the one generated by the so-called " Barrani gastronomy" , which refers to the premises that have already opened clandestinely , a modality celebrated by some citizens who manifest themselves on social networks or on TV, as was the case of the lawyer and financial analyst Carlos Maslatón.

My dinner, from somewhere in Buenos Aires, 100% clandestine and 100% Barrani. Down with the dictatorship. Freedom triumphs. pic.twitter.com/UzigxnGmqc

Some of the restaurants and bars that closed their doors permanently due to the crisis generated by the pandemic and the quarantine are Sottovoce, La Parolaccia (both in Puerto Madero), El Trapiche, El Rey del Vino (Palermo), La Parolaccia (several branches) , Hong Kong Style (Belgrano) and La Flor de Barracas, among others.

EC

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