Ft Worth Times

Chris Piekarski doesn’t like losing and he feels a sense of failure because the Fort Worth restaurant he co-owns did not survive COVID-19.

“My disappointment is that I failed because I couldn't get through this,” Piekarski told the Fort Worth Times. “I'm the type of person who will go through any door to solve a problem and get it done. I don't ever give up, and the biggest problem is coming to the realization that maybe this has to happen and it's a result of everything happening in the economy and the environment and how we structure ourselves for the future.”

Buffalo West had been a bustling salad bar and buffet-style steakhouse for eight years until the coronavirus hit.

“We were one of the first restaurants in Fort Worth to shut down,” he said. “Because of the location of our restaurant, we did a lot of work with the Joint Reserve Base and Naval Air Station and they immediately got quarantined.  We had an older crowd that was in the 50-years- old age range and up, which became a concern. We also had one of the last remaining salad bars around Fort Worth, and that became a concern. So, we shut down until curbside was allowed.”

The eatery is one of a slew that have since permanently closed in Fort Worth including Taverna, Bird Cafe, Deep Ellum Brewing, Cork & Pig Tavern on Crockett Row, Hoffbrau Steaks near the Fort Worth Zoo and Cantina Laredo downtown, according to media reports.

Piekarski is grateful to the federal government for the CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funding he received but bitter about how the city of Fort Worth and Tarrant County handled the pandemic.

“There has been zero guidance, communication or direction from anybody other than if it's politically motivated,” he said. “That's my biggest disappointment. We could have gotten together and figured out how to beat this thing or what's going to make it more beneficial. Those that did, it was all politically motivated for whatever reason they were trying and 99% of the restaurants were left out of it.”

All is not lost, however, as Piekarski still has some fight left in him.

“I'm not the guy who sits at home and lets my brain un-develop or retire,” he said.

The New Jersey native is planning a grand reopening under a different name with window or curbside pick-up and delivery service by a driver who only works for his diner.

“I think that's a golden opportunity of how restaurants need to change,” Piekarski said. “My idea is for the restaurant to have a much smaller footprint on the inside, the opportunity to do quality carry-out on the outside as well as offer a specific delivery service to people that know when you bring the meal to the door, it's signed, sealed and delivered the appropriate way, which puts everybody's mind at ease."