Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
RESTAURANTS SAY precaution key to opening.
Practices for dine-in service beginning May 11 outlined
FAYETTEVILLE — Northwest Arkansas restaurants are ready to open their doors by taking proper precautions.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Wednesday announced restaurants could start resuming dine-in service with limitations beginning May 11. He outlined practices the businesses must follow, including limiting occupancy to one-third of capacity as set by the fire marshal, spacing tables at least 10 feet apart and no open bars nor live entertainment.
Servers must wear masks and gloves. Customers must wear a face covering until food or drink is served, and service can be declined if a person doesn’t wear a mask.
The plan to open will happen in phases, Hutchinson said. In a second phase, occupancy would rise to two-thirds capacity while maintaining social distancing, he said. The third and final phase would have services resume as usual.
Doug Allen, owner of Jose’s Bar & Grill in Tontitown, said the plan seems like a good start. He noted
the date falls after two of his biggest business days, Cinco de Mayo on Tuesday and Mother’s Day on May 10.
Jose’s started functioning like a grocery store, in addition to curbside food pickup, after closing its dining space. As a result, the restaurant has been able to retain most of its staff, Allen said.
“I need to continue to do this,” he said. “A third of the business is not going to pay my bills. So I’m going to keep supplementing with the grocery service, the hard-to-find items I can get.”
The business has boxes and boxes of hand sanitizer, for instance.
Allen said he had some questions about the guidelines, such as whether outdoor live music would be prohibited or if staff counts toward the occupancy limit. There are logistical matters too, such as workers touching used plates and glasses or handling credit cards and cash, he said.
Jose’s already shuts its doors every Monday to do a full-scale cleaning and screens employees before work, Allen said. Part of the challenge will be consumer confidence, he said.
“It’s trust. The restaurants that people trust, that are clean and safe, those are the places people are going to go,” he said. “It’s really important we focus on that.”
Dr. Nate Smith, the state’s health secretary, said specific restrictions are included with the directive. Smith issued the directive closing dine-in operations March 20.
The phase-in plan for restaurants balances federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance with what restaurants need to be able to do to function, said Montine McNulty, chief executive officer of the Arkansas Hospitality Association. McNulty represents restaurants, lodging and tourism on Hutchinson’s economic task force.
“My guess is there are some restaurants who will just take it in and go with it, and there are some who probably don’t like a lot of it,” she said. “But it’s the way it is.”
Hugo’s in Fayetteville will continue to focus on its curbside operation over the next few weeks and will watch what’s happening in other states lifting dine-in restrictions, said Jason Piazza, owner.
For instance, restaurants in Georgia were allowed to open their doors with restrictions Monday. Tables must be spaced with limited seating and workers have to wear masks and get screened for
illness, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Iowa will allow most of its counties to open restaurants starting Friday, with restrictions, such as no seating at bars and mandatory cleaning practices, according to the
Des Moines Register.
Customers can rest assured Hugo’s will be safe when it resumes dine-in service, Piazza said. The restaurant developed a robust protocol for handling to-go orders, and its employees practice social distancing outside work, he said.
“We have a plan in place to reopen, and it definitely falls within the guidelines of what the governor announced today,” Piazza said. “We’re ready to go with that; it’s just a matter of deciding when the right time to do that is.”
Matt Amato, owner of Beef ‘O’ Brady’s in Bentonville, welcomed Hutchinson’s announcement.
The past month has been tough, Amato said, adding he’s grateful to his regular customers for their continued support. The restaurant has stayed open with pickup service, but started closing at 9 p.m. instead of 11 p.m.
Some people will want to come in and interact with servers, while others will still be wary, Amato said. He encouraged those customers to continue getting pickup orders.
“I’m ready to get back to some normalcy,” he said. “I’m also excited to get some money in the pockets of my employees.”
Stacy Ryburn can be reached by email at sryburn@nwadg.com or on Twitter @stacyryburn. Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
reporter Tracy Neal contributed to this report.