Welcome to

The restaurant industry has been one of the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, but we’re starting to see examples of businesses stepping up to the plate to lend a helping hand.

Mac Shack owner Justo Cruz said the transition to take out orders has been a struggle.

“Ten to twelve percent of a normal restaurant’s revenue and we’re now trying to make that our 90 percent, which is extremely tough,” said Cruz.

But Mac Shack has help keeping the lights on thanks to a cheese and jalapeño filled sausage product it produces with Register’s Meat Company.

“Our sales have been crazy high with all the people that are shopping in grocery stores and on the other side our friends in the restaurant business, man they have just been struggling for conditions outside of what they can do,” said Register’s Meat Company Owner Ben Kaempfer.

Now, hoping to lend a helping hand to struggling panhandle restaurants the two companies are distributing hundreds of pounds of their sausages free of charge.

They’re calling it the ‘Sausage Stimulus’.

“You don’t have to be a large corporation or have multiple businesses to give something back to the community and this is one way we’re doing that,” said Cruz.

Mac Shack and Register’s Meat Company are only asking the restaurants to feature their product in a dish to receive the free product.

They’re also helping promote the restaurants through their own social media.

The business owners and some state officials hope creative ideas like the Sausage Stimulus will spread across the state.

“Everybody needs to take their part in helping their neighbor, helping their local restaurants,” said Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Nikki Fried.

And Commissioner Fried said keeping restaurants open will play a crucial role in restarting the economy.

“That’s where all of our tourism dollars come, when people come and travel our state eating at these local establishments,” said Fried.

Partnerships like the Sausage Stimulus can be beneficial to both the recipient and the donors.

Helping keep restaurants open means distributors won’t lose their customers when the pandemic slows.