Movie night missing something?

Aspen Cinemas now offering curbside concession sales

Don Cogger, Herald Sports Editor
Posted 4/7/20

Aspen Cinemas now offers curbside concessions

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Movie night missing something?

Aspen Cinemas now offering curbside concession sales

Posted

EVANSTON — The COVID-19 pandemic is changing the way we do things, at least in the short term, with residents encouraged (and in some states, required) to stay home unless absolutely necessary. With non-essential businesses like movie houses shuttered and folks turning to streaming services and other stay-at-home options for their entertainment, Aspen Cinemas in Evanston is offering movie buffs a treat.

Saturday marked the roll out of Aspen Cinema’s curbside pickup, giving those in need of a popcorn fix an opportunity to swing by and grab their favorite snacks. If microwave popcorn just isn’t cutting it any longer, popcorn aficionados can finally rejoice: You can pull right up to the curb, order snacks and pay for it all, without ever leaving your vehicle.

Just about everything on the menu board was available for purchase on Saturday — from popcorn and candy to hot food combos and meals.

“The first night went really well — we had a lot of support,” said Emily Huggins, who owns Aspen Cinemas with her husband David. “We even got a cute little thank you note from one of the kids. It was fun to see just the families and kids excited to get their favorite things. It was fun.”

Huggins said she and her staff began brainstorming the idea of curbside popcorn sales after  Aspen Cinemas was forced to shut down in mid-March, a casualty of the state’s proactive approach at slowing the spread of COVID-19.

“We had been thinking about it — we just weren’t sure as far as where the restrictions were going,” Huggins said. “They were making special allowances, then pulling restrictions. We were just kind of letting the dust settle a bit before we rolled it out. But we’ve had it in mind the whole time.”

Saturday’s debut of curbside sales went better than anyone at Aspen Cinemas could have imagined, with a steady stream of movie fans loading up on goodies during the four-hour window between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Not bad, considering the announcement was made just two hours earlier on social media.

“I do know that there was one car that ordered 10 of our meals,” Huggins said. “And my manager did say that at one point there were seven or eight cars lined up. My staff was running the whole four hours.”

Aspen Cinemas staff members Ayla Rhodes and Stacie Sheets were tasked with doling out the snacks; for safety reasons, Huggins said it was important to try and get the job done with a skeleton crew.

“We had just two people there, because you’re supposed to keep staff members as low as possible to minimize exposure,” she explained. “They ran their tails off, which was good — they loved it. They were so excited to be there. I called them, and within an hour, they were in there getting everything ready.”

There were ancillary benefits to the four-hour sprint as well, as Rhodes an Sheets were able to get their steps in for the day.

“They had on their fitbit watches, and one of them had like 12,000 steps by the end of the shift,” Huggins said, laughing. “They were excited they got a good workout in. And everybody was just so nice to them, so it was fun.”

With just two employees manning the station, the decision was made to have one in charge of food prep, while the other took orders and handled the cash. They also designated parking areas, depending on the size of the order.

“One would run out and take their order and keep track of their cars,” Huggins said. “There were separate areas to park — if you were just waiting for popcorn, you’d stay right at the curb. If you were waiting for a meal that takes longer, then you’d pull into a parking spot. They had it organized pretty well.”

Encouraged by the success of Saturday’s rollout, Huggins said Aspen Cinemas will continue the service every Friday and Saturday, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. An additional day may be added, depending on support and demand.

“We’re thinking about doing Sundays — Sundays aren’t typically our busiest time during the week, but some like to do a Sunday afternoon movie day,” she said. “So we are contemplating doing Sundays.”

Aspen Cinemas also has other ideas in the works, should the shutdown continue for the foreseeable future.

“We’re thinking about trying to do a drive-in,” Huggins explained. “So we are in the works of getting that organized, as well. We’d do it in the back parking lot — we’d create some sort of screen that would be up near that back side of the building on the south side of the lot. Hopefully we’ll be getting that going pretty soon.”

“I think it would be fun to give the community something fun to do,” she added. “I think even something little like that would be great to break up the monotony.”