BUY BUY LOCKDOWN!
Punters ready to splash the cash as pubs and bars welcome back customers for first time in five months
PUBS and bars with outdoor seating can reopen today as part of the latest lifting of lockdown rules - and venue owners say they’re raring to go. There is some trepidation about what the coming week will look like for these business and their staff but all are looking forward to opening their doors again after what has been a difficult five months. Lockdown measures were first eased on March 8, when schools reopened in England, followed by March 29, when millions in England saw the stay-at-home order end and the rule of six return.
Today, in the second stage of the easing of restrictions, shops, hairdressers and bars, among other venues, can reopen to customers. For pubs and bars in particular, it has been a difficult year as new restrictions and procedures were bought in following the UK’s first lockdown, limiting the footfall in most pubs.
Brian ‘Bob’ Taylor, who owns the e Crafty 1 Taproom and Boozy Bob’s s Brewery, both on Pywipe Industrial l Estate, opened the doors of the bar r in February last year - five months s after the brewery was up and run- ning and only a month before lock- down.
He said: “We opened the brewery y in September 2019 and then Crafty 1 which is right next door we got up p and running on February 20 a month before we went into the first t lockdown.
“I’ve got to be honest it has been a bit up and down since we got started, I think it is fair to say that with everything that has been going on. “I remember standing behind the e bar on the night the announcement t was made the first time around, it t was actually the first time that the whole of the seating area had been full, things looked like they were on the up.
“Boris made the announcement on the TV and all but one the tables immediately got up and left, it set the tone for the next year really. “The one remaining table asked if I would mind if they stayed for another pint, I remember thinking you can stay until the 12 midnight deadline for me.”
Since the initial closure for the first lockdown, pubs and bars have faced heightened restrictions which some owners have struggled to understand with accusations of a lack of clarity at a national level.
This time around, the so-called Scotch egg rule has also been ditched so there will be no requirement for customers to order a substantial meal with their drink. Also gone is the 10pm curfew that was much criticised by publicans and customers alike.
Brian, who was a joiner by trade, said: “The first lockdown caught us completely by surprise obviously and I think in the end we had to tip away something like 3,500 or 4,000 litres of beer.
“We brew around 28 different beers alongside making wine and cider too. I’ve actually got a license to distil and we’re getting around to those plans too.
“It has been a difficult year really but we’re absolutely looking forward to welcoming people back and getting back to something that seems a little more normal.
“We’re outside only at the moment with table service and we’ve got 20 tables that can be booked online but we will be accepting walk ins during quieter times.
“I think this time with the restrictions the way that they are, we’ve got a much better chance of making a go o of it and we’re really hopeful to see w what the next few months brings.” Pubs have reopened their beer g gardens but everyone who visits will have to check in on the NHS’s Test and Trace app. They are only allowed to open in England providing they offer outdoor service and s strict table service only. Drinkers and diners must comply with a toughening of the Test and Trace rules, which previously only required one person from each group to register their attendance on the NHS Covid app.
All customers must check-in under the new regulations, allowing the NHS to more easily contact anyone who may have been in contact with someone infected with the virus.
Nathan Taylor of the Cleethorpes Taphouse and Kitchen said: “I am a bit apprehensive about us opening up, I think it is all about managing expectations and blowing off some of the cobwebs because we’ll be a bit rusty after being closed for so long again.
“For these first few weeks it is just
about people being able to go back out again and meet people they haven’t seen for a long time and catch up. “We’re not taking table bookings but we’re asking people to be sensible when they’re using the tables and not nurse one coffee or pint for five hours and also to not get carried away drinking all day.
“The first few days will be all about everyone finding their feet again, that is staff and customers too.
“For me the most important thing is that we continue to do everything as safely as possible because we don’t want to see cases going up again in the near future.
“I’ve got to say though I look around at the other bars and pubs in the resort and I think everyone is on the same page, everyone wants this to go well so we can stay open from now on.
“I have to give a shout-out to the staff who have been absolutely brilliant over the past few months, keeping the venues ticking over and helping us get ready for this reopening again. “They deserve a special thanks for the work that they have put in and I hope the next few days are good for them too and that people are considerate of them.”
Though the latest easing of rules has been welcome news for many, there are still many pubs and bars in the area that will be left behind as they lack the proper outdoor space.
The new rules will prevent reopening altogether for more than half of Britain’s 48,000 pubs without sufficient outside space, the British Beer and Pub Association estimates that just 40 per cent of pubs in England have the space to reopen. It has confirmed that pubs will be able to serve takeaway drinks from April 12 which may be a potential boost for bars without gardens. One venue that has invested in its outside area is The Linden Club in Cleethorpes who, like many pubs and bars, have been aware of the British weather and have invested in a partially covered area.
Manager Billy Anderson said: “I’m just looking forward to getting back to having a routine, I’ve been going off the rails in lockdown without anything to do
“Seriously though, I’m looking forward to getting people back through the door, we love meeting people and the social side of the job - I think that is what we’re all in this for really. “The directors here have put in some real hard work to get this place ready, this is the thing that people don’t see - they’re the ones down here with the paint brushes and hammers putting together the new furniture and things like that.
“There is a bit of trepidation for this week, I think it will be a bit new for everyone again. The one that worries me most is Saturday where we’ve got 200 booking over the course of the day. “We’re incredibly lucky though to have this space, since the first lockdown it has brought a lot of different types of customers here that we might not have had before.”
The rules from today state that groups of people will be permitted to eat and or drink outside at pubs and restaurants so long as they observe the rule of six, which allows half a dozen people from different households to meet – or if they come from two different households.
This means that two large families can meet up outside even if together there are more than six people present. It won’t be until May 17 at the earliest that pubs and restaurants can open indoor spaces. At this point, the rule of six and two households rule will be introduced indoors.
It will be lifted outdoors, meaning people will be able to meet in larger groups in beer gardens or when dining outside.
It has been a difficult year really but we’re absolutely looking forward to welcoming people back and getting back to something that seems a little more normal
Brian ‘Bob’ Taylor