There’s very little that I can say that hasn’t already been said. We are heartbroken and devastated, seeing our great industry crumble around us in such a short time. Even while “social distancing” is what’s best for the community at large, it is still incredibly difficult to see its impact on the bars, restaurants, hotels, and more importantly the people that we love.
Chris and I have been talking every day about how we can help our community, and this page is our first step. Thank you to everyone who shared their links and resources with us to help create this resource!
Below you’ll find links for financial assistance programs as well as free and low-cost resources to help fill our time in productive ways.
You have dedicated your life and your career to the service of others, and I know it is easy to feel invisible. But the world sees you now and how this crisis is affecting you, and we care! Know that Chris and I are listening and working hard to find ways to use A Bar Above as a resource to support the industry financially and mentally for as long as this storm may last.
Serve on.
Julia & Chris Tunstall
Founders, A Bar Above
SHARE YOUR RESOURCES
Today, this page is very USA-centric, because most of my network is in the USA. For those outside the USA, please share your resources and I will update and improve this page further for our hospitality community across the globe!
All resources are welcome – Global, USA and regional.
Skip Ahead:
Use these links to skip to the sections most useful to you.
For Owners & Operators
For All Hospitality Industry
Financial & Basic Needs Resources & Assistance
- Charities and Relief Funds
- Ways to Make Money
- Free & Low Cost Meals
- SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, aka Food Stamps)
- Free & Low Cost Meals
- Unemployment Benefits & Other Financial Resourcess
Free and low-cost Learning
Mental & Physical Health
FOR OWNERS AND OPERATORS
Ways to Get Help
- Community: Innovations in Hospitality Facebook Group
- Advice: Seated Hotline – a business assistance hotline for operators
- Advice: SCORE: free business mentorship and assistance
- Funding: SBA Disaster Assistance Loan Information
- Funding: Facebook Small Business Grants Program
- Guide: Coronavirus Guide for F&B from ReThink Food
- Revenue: Add your restaurant to the SupportRestaurants.org Dining Bond list
- Resource: Links for Operators in Hospitality
- Resource: Spill the Dish (search by state)
- Webinar: Now What Business Ops Guide for Restaurants 03 18 2020
- Free Online Ordering & POS for free through the end of 2020 from Ecwid
Ways you Can Help
- The Plan: Offer affordable meals to the community
- Donate to Feed Hospitality in San Francisco, CA to support the SF hospitality community and local farms through the COVID-19 crisis and beyond
- The Spirit Hub Independent Distillery Preservation Fund, A Non-Profit 501(c)3 to Support Independent Distilleries Across the Country
FOR ALL HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
Financial & Basic Needs Resources & Assistance
Charities and Relief Funds
Global
- United Way Global Community Response and Recovery Fund
USA Nationwide
- Women of the Vine is offering legal aid, financial counseling, and mental health services
- The USBG National Charity Foundation – Bartender Emergency Assistance Program
- C.O.R.E. (Children of Restaurant Employees)
- One Fair Wage: Tipped and Service Worker Support Fund is trying to give every worker $213
- Golden Rule Charity
- Restaurant Workers’ Community Foundation
- United Way Global Community Response and Recovery Fund (Find your local chapter here to request assistance)
- Modest Needs Foundation
- Another Round, Another rally
- Undocu Workers Fund – for undocumented workers in the service industry
Regional and Local:
- California: California Restaurant Association Foundation, Big Table (San Diego)
- Colorado: Colorado Restaurant Foundation
- Georgia: The Giving Kitchen
- Massachusetts: the Greg Hill Foundation Restaurant Strong Fund
- New York: Service Workers Coalition. Rethink + Restaurant Response Program COVID-19 Food HUB, Free Industry meals via IGCHospitality. Brooklyn Service Workers Coalition
- Texas: Southern Smoke and the Texas Restaurant Association
- Virginia: The Holli Fund (Richmond)
- Washington, D.C., Hook Hall
- Washington: Big Table (Seattle, Spokane), Amazon’s Neighborhood Small Business Relief Fund (Seattle area)
Ways to Make Money
Happy Hours, Gigs, Etc.
- Dani & Jackie’s Virtual Happy Hour – Host a happy hour and receive tips.
- Virtual Tip Jars – Washington DC and Nationwide
Job Opportunities
- Companies are hiring: Amazon, Costco, Target, Walmart, plus Grocery Stores near you.
- Work from Home: Rev Transcription, FlexJobs, iReviews’ Top Remote Work List
- Industries that are Hiring during COVID-19
Unemployment Benefits & Other Financial Resources
- A List of Unemployment Benefits Websites by State
- 211.org: A resource to guide you how to navigate local government and charitable resources for housing, food, utilities, and transportation services.
- Need Help Paying Bills – a list of resources by state and county
- Comprehensive List of advice for financial relief (including credit card payments, student loan payments, mortgage relief, etc.)
- TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families)
- EFSP: Emergency Food and Shelter Program
Free and Low-cost Learning
Bar & Cocktail Learning
- Diageo Bar Academy
- Free Flair Training Videos
- BarSmarts (Use code “TRYBARSMARTS” to enroll for free)
- Free Classic Bartending Books (public domain)
- Suggestions for Staying Sharp with an Empty Bar (and this post in the Craft Bartender Community has some great suggestions too)
Education Beyond the Bar:
- 450 Free Ivy League courses You can Take Online Digital Marketer Training (Free until March 31)
- Coursera – Free courses from universities and organizations around the world.
- Alison.com – Certificate Courses in many industries
- CodeAcademy – Learn to Code
- DuoLingo – Learn another lanugage
Exercise and Wellness
- Annie Ward “The Healthtender” for home workouts
- Online Yoga: Yoga with Adiene on YouTube or apps like DownDog (free until April 1)
- Free Health & Fitness Videos from the YMCA
Mental Health
- Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255
- Meditation Apps: InsightTimer is “the YouTube of Meditations” and the Headspace app is offering free meditations specific to the crisis.
- Suggested Bartender Quarantine Schedule
Communities & Connection:
- Badass Bartenders — A general community for female bartenders that includes a jobs listings board
- Hospitality Industry COVID-19 Support
- Bartenders, Servers & Hospitality COVID-19 Discussion Group
- Hospitality Industry Alliance
- The Craft Bartender Community (General Industry Group, not Specific to COVID-19)
The Mixology Certification Scholarship
Are you in the hospitality industry and have you been affected by COVID-19? Get completely free access to the Mixology Certification Program and use your downtime to become a better bartender.
We’re giving 100 Bartenders a Scholarship for the Mixology Certification Program.
Thank you!
This list is only possible thanks to dozens of other posts, shares, and resource websites. Thank you to everyone who replied to our call for links and to the sites below. Again, please reach out if you know of additional links or resources that we can add. This page will be updated frequently!
