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| A Not-Quite-Restaurant Faces the New Reality | A Not-Quite-Restaurant Faces the New Reality |
| (3 months later) | |
| The restaurants of New York City have gone dark. But what of the not-quite-restaurants: the in-betweens with just a few wobbly chairs, the lunch counters that hedge bets by selling groceries alongside hot food, the tiny spots whose very grasp at existence is a daily improvisation? | The restaurants of New York City have gone dark. But what of the not-quite-restaurants: the in-betweens with just a few wobbly chairs, the lunch counters that hedge bets by selling groceries alongside hot food, the tiny spots whose very grasp at existence is a daily improvisation? |
| On Monday, Mirna Elisabeth Marroquin and Lorenzo Garcia were watching the news, waiting to learn if the pupuseria they own and run in Flatbush, Brooklyn, would have to close. As of 8 p.m., all restaurants in the tristate area would be limited to takeout and delivery, to help halt the spread of the coronavirus — but did Mirna’s Pupuseria count as a restaurant? | On Monday, Mirna Elisabeth Marroquin and Lorenzo Garcia were watching the news, waiting to learn if the pupuseria they own and run in Flatbush, Brooklyn, would have to close. As of 8 p.m., all restaurants in the tristate area would be limited to takeout and delivery, to help halt the spread of the coronavirus — but did Mirna’s Pupuseria count as a restaurant? |
| The triangular corner storefront, half a mile from the last stop on the No. 5 train, was once an insurance agent’s office, then a coffee shop. When Ms. Marroquin and Mr. Garcia took over the space last August, they imagined it as partly a store. Shelves on the back wall stock Salvadoran groceries: brined pacaya palm flowers, their bumpy strands like skinny tentacles; semita de piña, pastry with a secret cache of pineapple jam; pale bricks of queso duro blando, a hard cheese that’s eerily light and ready to crumble. | The triangular corner storefront, half a mile from the last stop on the No. 5 train, was once an insurance agent’s office, then a coffee shop. When Ms. Marroquin and Mr. Garcia took over the space last August, they imagined it as partly a store. Shelves on the back wall stock Salvadoran groceries: brined pacaya palm flowers, their bumpy strands like skinny tentacles; semita de piña, pastry with a secret cache of pineapple jam; pale bricks of queso duro blando, a hard cheese that’s eerily light and ready to crumble. |
| There are a few tables, but no servers. Orders are placed at the cash register, next to a stash of Mentos mints and bottles of cough syrup. | There are a few tables, but no servers. Orders are placed at the cash register, next to a stash of Mentos mints and bottles of cough syrup. |
| Ms. Marroquin grew up in the ancient Mesoamerican city of Chalchuapa in western El Salvador; pupusas are her birthright. She and Mr. Garcia, an immigrant from Mexico, met and married in New York. To make a living, she cleaned houses and he worked in construction. | Ms. Marroquin grew up in the ancient Mesoamerican city of Chalchuapa in western El Salvador; pupusas are her birthright. She and Mr. Garcia, an immigrant from Mexico, met and married in New York. To make a living, she cleaned houses and he worked in construction. |
| When friends dropped by, she made them pupusas, of course, and they started jokingly calling her home Mirna’s Pupuseria. Now that name belongs to this storefront on Flatbush Avenue, two blocks from where she and Mr. Garcia live, and far from the gentrified neighborhoods whose bars were still drawing reckless crowds last weekend. | When friends dropped by, she made them pupusas, of course, and they started jokingly calling her home Mirna’s Pupuseria. Now that name belongs to this storefront on Flatbush Avenue, two blocks from where she and Mr. Garcia live, and far from the gentrified neighborhoods whose bars were still drawing reckless crowds last weekend. |
| The pupusas — savory cakes of masa harina, fine corn flour that Ms. Marroquin mixes with nothing more than cold water — are soft and thick, their curves comfortingly inexact, patted into shape by hand. Patches of bronze testify to crisping on the comal. Break off a corner and the cheese inside oozes and stretches, refusing to let go. | The pupusas — savory cakes of masa harina, fine corn flour that Ms. Marroquin mixes with nothing more than cold water — are soft and thick, their curves comfortingly inexact, patted into shape by hand. Patches of bronze testify to crisping on the comal. Break off a corner and the cheese inside oozes and stretches, refusing to let go. |
| These are breakfast, lunch, dinner and all-day snacks. The cheese alone is rich enough: mozzarella, milky queso fresco and queso duro with its lode of salt, anchored by heavy cream. Green flecks announce the presence of loroco, a flowering vine whose unopened buds are deployed as a chive-like herb, only milder. | These are breakfast, lunch, dinner and all-day snacks. The cheese alone is rich enough: mozzarella, milky queso fresco and queso duro with its lode of salt, anchored by heavy cream. Green flecks announce the presence of loroco, a flowering vine whose unopened buds are deployed as a chive-like herb, only milder. |
| Other pupusas come filled with inky refried beans and chicharrón — not cracklings but pork shoulder, anointed with orange juice and browned in a pan, then pulverized with tomatoes, onions and green bell peppers and returned to the stove to darken further. | Other pupusas come filled with inky refried beans and chicharrón — not cracklings but pork shoulder, anointed with orange juice and browned in a pan, then pulverized with tomatoes, onions and green bell peppers and returned to the stove to darken further. |
| Swap in rice flour, whisked with boiling water, for masa harina and the resulting pupusas are crispier and spongier, airy lunar disks quicker to char. | Swap in rice flour, whisked with boiling water, for masa harina and the resulting pupusas are crispier and spongier, airy lunar disks quicker to char. |
| No pupusa is complete without a tuft of curtido, a bracing slaw of cabbage and carrots blanched and tumbled in vinegar and salt. Giant jars of it are kept in the cold case, with fistfuls prepackaged in plastic bags for takeout. It’s traditional to add a daub of gentle salsa roja, but I like the fiercer, full-force crush of chile de arbol, barely tempered with tomato. | No pupusa is complete without a tuft of curtido, a bracing slaw of cabbage and carrots blanched and tumbled in vinegar and salt. Giant jars of it are kept in the cold case, with fistfuls prepackaged in plastic bags for takeout. It’s traditional to add a daub of gentle salsa roja, but I like the fiercer, full-force crush of chile de arbol, barely tempered with tomato. |
| Each morning begins with the staff — Ms. Marroquin, her husband and two of her nieces — scrubbing down the entire storefront. They make chorizo, lacing the pork sausages with achiote, and prepare tamales for steaming: savory ones with the masa velvety from chicken broth and close to custard, wrapped in plantain leaves; and sweet, buttery ones inside corn husks. | Each morning begins with the staff — Ms. Marroquin, her husband and two of her nieces — scrubbing down the entire storefront. They make chorizo, lacing the pork sausages with achiote, and prepare tamales for steaming: savory ones with the masa velvety from chicken broth and close to custard, wrapped in plantain leaves; and sweet, buttery ones inside corn husks. |
| Some days, quesadillas are stacked by the cash register — shallow cakes, maybe an inch high, dense with cheese. You taste sugar, then salt, then sugar again, each yielding the stage to the other. | Some days, quesadillas are stacked by the cash register — shallow cakes, maybe an inch high, dense with cheese. You taste sugar, then salt, then sugar again, each yielding the stage to the other. |
| Updated June 12, 2020 | |
| Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks. | |
| So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement. | |
| A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study. | |
| The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April. | |
| Mass protests against police brutality that have brought thousands of people onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases. While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus. Some infectious disease experts were reassured by the fact that the protests were held outdoors, saying the open air settings could mitigate the risk of transmission. | |
| Exercise researchers and physicians have some blunt advice for those of us aiming to return to regular exercise now: Start slowly and then rev up your workouts, also slowly. American adults tended to be about 12 percent less active after the stay-at-home mandates began in March than they were in January. But there are steps you can take to ease your way back into regular exercise safely. First, “start at no more than 50 percent of the exercise you were doing before Covid,” says Dr. Monica Rho, the chief of musculoskeletal medicine at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Thread in some preparatory squats, too, she advises. “When you haven’t been exercising, you lose muscle mass.” Expect some muscle twinges after these preliminary, post-lockdown sessions, especially a day or two later. But sudden or increasing pain during exercise is a clarion call to stop and return home. | |
| States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people. | |
| Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days. | |
| If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.) | |
| Taking one’s temperature to look for signs of fever is not as easy as it sounds, as “normal” temperature numbers can vary, but generally, keep an eye out for a temperature of 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. If you don’t have a thermometer (they can be pricey these days), there are other ways to figure out if you have a fever, or are at risk of Covid-19 complications. | |
| The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing. | |
| If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others. | |
| If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested. | |
| Mirna’s Pupuseria is but one of the hundreds of small neighborhood spots that quietly sustain our city’s daily life. Often relying on the labor of a single family, they have little defense against the ravages of fate, and appear and disappear without fanfare, mourned only by those privileged to have known them. | Mirna’s Pupuseria is but one of the hundreds of small neighborhood spots that quietly sustain our city’s daily life. Often relying on the labor of a single family, they have little defense against the ravages of fate, and appear and disappear without fanfare, mourned only by those privileged to have known them. |
| Come Tuesday morning, the kitchen was in action, making orders for pickup and delivery. But Mr. Garcia wondered if it would be worth keeping the place going during the shutdown. “We cannot be open for eight hours and make only $20,” he said. “We have expenses.” | Come Tuesday morning, the kitchen was in action, making orders for pickup and delivery. But Mr. Garcia wondered if it would be worth keeping the place going during the shutdown. “We cannot be open for eight hours and make only $20,” he said. “We have expenses.” |
| He was worried about the virus, too. “If it’s going to be safe for my family, we will stay open,” he said. “If not, we’ll close.” | He was worried about the virus, too. “If it’s going to be safe for my family, we will stay open,” he said. “If not, we’ll close.” |
| Mirna’s Pupuseria 1350 Flatbush Avenue (East 26th Street), Flatbush, Brooklyn; 347-730-9001; brooklynpupusas.com | Mirna’s Pupuseria 1350 Flatbush Avenue (East 26th Street), Flatbush, Brooklyn; 347-730-9001; brooklynpupusas.com |
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