Craft Roots in the News: Morgan Hill Goes All-In With Outdoor Dining [Video]

KPIX 5 Reporter John Ramos Interviewed Owners J. and Nick Gaich

As the pandemic wears on, Morgan Hill is doing al fresco dining in a big way. KPIX 5's John Ramos reported, "Morgan Hill is feeling the same economic pressures any other place, but this community is showing how much can be accomplished when you embrace change, rather than try to resist it." 

John goes on to point out that the City of Morgan Hill is working to make the downtown area "an attraction of sorts." Local restaurants downtown, including Craft Roots, now extend out into the street thanks to the easing of regulations by Morgan Hill city government and helpful grants to assist businesses with making necessary upgrades to pivot to outdoor services. 

John interviewed Mayor Rich Constantine who said, "So with this new norm, of, you know, the future is outside, we've actually partnered with our community to help our businesses thrive through this pandemic." 

New Outdoor Improvements

We agree it's not enough to just drag tables and chairs outside, and we're thankful that the City of Morgan Hill provided grants for small businesses like us to make necessary upgrades to provide attractive outdoor dining experiences. 

Craft Roots owner, J. Gaich said, "So the whole goal right now is to fight the wind, sun, and temperature." That's the new challenge on top of everything else. John reported that J and his father Nick Gaich opened Craft Roots just six months before the pandemic hit. "They spent a lot of money fixing up the inside and now they're doing it again, this time outdoors. What used to be a driveway now holds tables shaded by umbrellas." reported John. 

Nick says the new additions have improved their sales from 20% of normal to up to about 70%. And according to Nick this, "allows us to go from a state of just stabilization and recovery to hopefully thinking about renewal and what it means long term for us here in our community."

Embracing a European "Al Fresco" Lifestyle

As John points out, that's the key. In Morgan Hill, we're not just trying to hang on, while we wait out the pandemic, we're embracing a model of outdoor al fresco living; placing an all-in bet that our community and visitors will actually enjoy it. 

And yes, John, we agree that, "Being kicked to the curb may not be so bad." Thank you so much for covering our downtown community and interviewing us at Craft Roots! ​