Restaurants pin hopes on Labor Day

Tropical Storm Irene has made Labor Day weekend more important for restaurants, catering halls and hotels in tourist communities after disrupting business this past weekend and leaving behind the lingering challenges of power outages and lack of phone service.

"The forecast [for this weekend] is fantastic, so you have a chance to medicate losses by getting up and running," said Steve Haweeli," president of Word Hampton Public Relations in East Hampton, which represents a number of Long Island restaurants and hotels.

Several restaurateurs and the state restaurant association held a news conference in Lido Beach Tuesday to tell customers it's business as usual this weekend.

"For many of our restaurants, [Irene] was a hardship," said Brian Rosenberg, vice president of the association's local chapter and owner of Sugar, a nightclub in Carle Place. "We urge residents to come out and support these places, to help keep the doors open and people employed."

The summer's big weekends -- Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day -- are critical for seasonal businesses. Each weekend day in the summer is equal to a busy Saturday, said Michael Hummel, sales director at The Sands on Lido Beach, a catering hall. "They are home runs and help you get through the slower times of the year," he said.

The Montauk Yacht Club Resort & Marina lost weekend business to Irene because it had to evacuate its staff and guests, but the club managed to quickly fill up empty rooms Monday and Tuesday by offering discounts and attracting local residents whose homes lacked power, said Lloyd Van Horn, general manager of the club. Its hotel is almost sold out for the rest of the week, though its not yet clear how well the marina will do renting boats slips, he said.

Butch Yamali, president of Dover Hospitality and Catering Co., estimated his company lost hundreds of thousands of dollars because Irene shut down the concession stands he operates along the boardwalk in Long Beach, at The Sands and at the MaliBlue Oyster Bar, also in Lido Beach.

"It's very hard to make up for lost sales," Yamali said.

Closing on Sunday meant a significant loss of sales for Prime, a Huntington waterfront restaurant that doubles its capacity during the summer with outdoor seating. The restaurant relied on a generator until the power returned Tuesday at about 4 p.m., and it used email blasts to let customers know the restaurant was open.

"We are capable of doing twice as much business in the summertime than in the wintertime, so Sunday was a big loss, and Saturday was a big loss as well," said Michael Bohlsen, co-owner of Prime. "This weekend is very important because once school starts people don't go out as much, and September is a pretty dead time for the restaurant business."