QUEENS, N.Y. - Tina Maria Oppedisano is the owner of Il Bacco in Little Neck Queens. In August, She took a lead role in a class action lawsuit seeking $2 billion in damages from the state for refusing to allow indoor dining at restaurants.

What You Need To Know

  • Il Bacco filed a class action lawsuit with around 900 restaurants calling for indoor dining 

  • Since the return of indoor dining announced at 25 percent capacity they now want 50 percent

  • Il Bacco's owner, Tina Maria Oppedisano says operating at 25 percent capacity isn't enough with what it costs to operate a restaurant

  • As the weather gets cooler Oppedisano says she is scared about the weather impacting her outdoor business

"Most people are not in the restaurant industry and they don't understand 25 percent is not a victory. Twenty-five percent is a step in the right direction but not a victory,” Oppedisano said.

Since NY1 last spoke with her in August, Governor Andrew Cuomo gave the green light to allow indoor dining, but limiting it to 25 percent of a restaurant's capacity. Oppedisano says 25 percent is just not enough.

"By the time you pay your chef, your bus boy, your runner your waiter your dishwasher, you manager, any kind of job position by the time you pay all of them if you have a small business  it's just not cutting it,” Oppedisano said.

The state originally responded to the class action lawsuit September 1st noting that the city was the hardest hit and and the governor took action to reduce infections in the areas that were driving clusters in other large cities around the country.

The class action suit now has been amended asking for at least 50 percent capacity by September 30th or shortly after that.

The restaurant is just feet away from the Nassau County border and they want 50 percent indoor dining capacity like Long Island was granted June 24th.

"Fifty percent got chosen for the sole reason for that part of our lawsuit is that we are 500 feet from the border of Nassau County," Oppedisano said.

And she says the timing of it all couldn't be worse for restaurants like hers as the weather gets colder. For outdoor dining they have been using their roof and a space to the side of the restaurant.

Once November comes it's too cold up here to operate and function.

Oppedisano said when indoor dining does resume here in the city on September 30th it is definitely not going to be easy incorporating all of the added safety protocols into their workday including temperature checks and collecting contact information from each party for tracking.

The governor has said if the coronavirus infection rate in the city does not go up significantly... restaurants in the city will be allowed to increase their maximum capacity to 50 percent on November 1.