The newly-launched “Dining Out NYC” program is set to go into effect on April 1st, and it can change the entire landscape of al fresco eating in the city.
Learning from pandemic-era dining mistakes, this program aims to “prioritize equity and strengthen access to safe, clean outdoor dining across all boroughs.” Following issues with the restaurants‘ application process earlier this year, Ydanis Rodriguez, NYC DOT Commissioner, announced on February 28th that the agency will assist eateries working on the “cumbersome” task required by law.
Beginning Monday, March 3rd, the DOT will start sending letters to food service establishments granting conditional application approvals for roadway dining setups through Dining Out NYC. Per the agency, conditional approval will be granted to all roadway dining applicants that have been heard at a legally mandated public hearing. The 2,000 businesses with existing sidewalk-based outdoor dining were permitted to remain open while their applications were pending. The conditional approvals will grant nearly 3,000 sidewalk and roadway setups to operate.
“Outdoor dining on our sidewalks and roadways has been a lifeline for many restaurants, and we are cutting through red tape to ensure that thousands of restaurants will be up and running as the weather warms,” Rodriguez said in a statement.
This comes on the heels a stall in application approvals. On Wednesday, February 12th, news broke via Grub Street that out of the nearly 4,000 applications that have been submitted, the Department of Transportation allegedly only approved 40 of them to proceed. Given the news, New Yorkers assumed options would be minimal.
City Comptroller Brad Landen, who was concerned about the looming April 1st start date, promised New Yorkers he would provide weekly figures on outdoor-dining permits via social media. The DOT responded, saying one-third of the applications were unqualified, and the remaining two-thirds have moved on in the review process, and community boards and the comptroller were the ones who had to give the green light.
Now, with one month to go until the program starts, it seems the DOT is attempting to expedite hold-ups.
A brief outdoor dining history, pre “Dining Out NYC”
NYC first saw outdoor dining structures arise during the pandemic, when indoor dining was not permitted at the time. These sidewalk cafés and streeteries soon became crucial for small businesses’ success. Legislation was even passed in the summer of 2023 permitting outdoor dining for every restaurant across every neighborhood in the five boroughs, when it was almost exclusively just in Manhattan at one point.
Now, further official rules have been outlined for the city’s “Dining Out NYC” program that launched in March 2024. Learning from the mistakes made during the pandemic-era’s temporary outdoor dining program, the new execution aims for a cleaner, safer experience. First off, businesses will pay their yearly fee based off of the length and width of their new roadway/sidewalk cafe. Secondly, no new structures are allowed to be fully enclosed. Furthermore, though sidewalk cafes are permitted year-round, roadway cafes can only operate for an eight-month season from April to November.
“After several years under a temporary program, New Yorkers finally have rules to govern the future of outdoor dining,” said Maulin Mehta, New York director, Regional Plan Association. “The new program balances business and community needs to improve our streets and give all neighborhoods an opportunity to enjoy alfresco dining.”
An online application portal for “Dining Out NYC” is open to restaurants. You can find more detailed information on the new program here.