Ephrata bistro owner reflects on ongoing closure; will the Legislature step in?

EPHRATA — Kamela Farmer recalls a time during junior high when a teacher purposefully dropped a gum wrapper on the ground. By doing so, the teacher wanted to prove Ephrata had a huge sense of community.

“(The teacher) goes, ‘I bet you this paper wrapper doesn’t stay here for more than five minutes,’” Farmer said. “Within 30 seconds, somebody had picked that up.”

Farmer, owner of Uggie Boo’s Basin Street Bistro in Ephrata, said the restaurant opened its doors in 2015 when she and her husband stumbled across a bistro that was for sale. Since then, the bistro became a gathering place for family and friends alike.

“Everybody knows everybody, and we all love and support one another,” Farmer said. “Our bar is — I’m telling you — it’s the heart of our community.”

Uggie Boo’s is known for its inviting environment, Farmer said. It was a place where parents can have a glass of wine after they drop off their kids at school practice. The bistro was also known for its spicy California crab stuffed avocado, which won the best appetizer of the year from the Samaritan Healthcare Foundation.

However, the bistro is just one of the many mom-and-pop businesses that had to shut their doors under the governor’s restrictions in March 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic began.

“Once the governor closed us down, that’s when everything went to hell in a handbasket,” Farmer said.

During this year’s state legislative session, some lawmakers are pushing for bills that would help reopen businesses like Uggie Boo’s.

Senate Bill 5114, if signed into law, would immediately move the state to Phase 2 of Gov. Jay Inslee’s “Healthy Washington - Roadmap to Recovery” plan. SB 5114 also has a companion bill, House Bill 1321.

Under Phase 2, food establishments would be allowed to have indoor dining at 25% capacity, according to the governor’s office. Food establishments must close at 11 p.m., and outdoor dining would be limited to six people per table.

Farmer said SB 5114 is a step in the right direction, but it is not enough.

“As it is right now, we can’t even afford to be open at 25% capacity because our place is so small,” Farmer said. “That’s only one table.”

Farmer said Uggie Boo’s tried to offer carryout service, but it was too expensive to begin with. The equipment that is needed to keep orders warm or cool, as well as the to-go containers, were costly.

About two-thirds of the bistro’s profit comes from gambling and drinks, Farmer said. Food is the remaining third, and if indoor dining is limited to 25% capacity, it would not suffice.

“You can’t even keep the lights on for that,” Farmer said.

Traci Bennett, director of community services for the city of Ephrata, has been a customer at Uggie Boo’s for about four years. She said the bistro is a good place to have dinner and a drink.

In the summertime, Bennett said she would watch a Seattle Mariners game at the bistro. She would watch a Seattle Seahawks game in the fall, too.

But for months, being socially isolated has taken a toll not only on her but others as well.

“We’re social by nature, and we’re not getting that right now,” Bennett said.

Bennett said she is supportive of SB 5114 because most people are “ready to move on” and many are continuing to take safety precautions by using masks and social distancing.

Small businesses like Uggie Boo’s need to reopen soon before small towns turn into ghost towns, Farmer said. The governor’s restrictions made a “huge ripple effect” that impacted many lives.

“(2020) has been the worst year ever,” Farmer said.