Like so many other things during this nightmarish two or three months (seems like years), this is so sudden. Restaurants that were confident that re-opening would happen soon may have been able to modify their layouts and print new menus, etc., but others are surely unprepared. I wondered today as we walked in LJ, about the restaurants that are re-opening right away: Are the ingredients fresh? What did they do with the excess tables and chairs? I’m going to wait until after the long weekend to jump into the water.
I wish this were more widely understood. It most directly affects buffets and salad bars. But worries about menus and other shared items (touch-wise) may be excessive.
Speaking of buffets and salad bars, the example of 85C, with re-usable tongs and trays to pick out bakery items, is an interesting one. They’re still doing that, and never paused.
Here’s some sage advice that I read somewhere recently that directly confronts how to deal with the issue of tactile transmission:
“If you keep a glass of wine in each hand, you can’t accidentally touch your face.”
DC…I’m not particularly worried about the freshness of products right now. Anything perishable was most likely sold or given to their employees or frozen. If staples and canned goods are unopened they should still be plenty good. If they were open, they too probably went to employees or were sold. Quite a few restaurants liquidated their inventory when they closed. Farmers, wholesale vendors and, of course, Sysco and to a lesser extent, U.S. Foods in San Diego, should be able to deliver quickly so that inventories are restocked. This part really isn’t very hard
Excess tables and chairs have probably been moved to storage areas that are either on or off premises. I’ve actually seen a few ads for places offering tables, chairs and serviceware for sale.
I’m in no rush to get back out there. I want to see how my fellow San Diegans handle reopening. Are they respectful of the rules and other diners, or are they going to be bad actors and insist on crowding spaces, not wearing masks where required, engaging in risky behavior and so forth. And how are the restaurants going to deal with the few bad apples.
Frankly, I’d really like to see them close India St and a few others and try street dining. I think it would be a great summer investment.
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Not to mention all the people driving in from LA and other places where restaurants haven’t reopened.
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Good point Robert. It’s about time for the invasion of the Zonies as well.
Judging from pictures of SD restaurants posted online today, social distancing is a sham. Think I’ll stick with take out and cooking at home for awhile.
Well, that’s unfortunate and pretty unhelpful. I hope it doesn’t continue like that, overall. I don’t like some of the rules nor the way they’ve been decided, but I’ll abide by them. All of us need to at least cooperate.
I’d love to see that tried. But I’m a fair-weather diner, and will only dine al fresco when its not too hot, not too cold (heaters not withstanding), not raining, and not too windy. Picky, picky, picky. At other times, it’s indoors (with a/c when it’s hot) or no-go.
I think there’s a plan in the works to close down 5th in the Gaslamp on Saturday nights. India is a similar strip, but a different demographic.
A little anecdote from Reno. Our restaurants are starting to open. Reduction of tables/customers, etc. Can’t remember what CA is requiring but here the bar can be open to serve customers in the dining room but customers can’t be in the bar. Last night a place in Reno - found this out via FB - was clearly violating that rule and declared in all caps NO ONE CARES! Well, I care and sent notices to our mayor and governor. Besides the health risk, they may wind up shutting everything down again. I was more than a tad pissed.
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Well, well. Got this back from the city.
Closing Comments
Posted business location with Courtesy Notice to comply and copy of Phase 1 guidelines.
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Between the police departments in all of San Diego’s cities and the County sheriff’s department, 400 citations were issued yesterday for failure to comply. Most were in the beach communities where people were actively violating no access rules by circumventing barriers or blockades put up to keep people out. Restaurants appear to have been a mixed bag. I think the majority of the owners are trying to take this seriously so they can stay open. One even requires diners to get “permission” from their waiter if they want to use the restroom.
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That’s where I’ll draw the line. I won’t return to a place that does that. Does this place also require you to raise your hand showing one or two fingers (two getting priority bathroom privileges)? I remember that from grade school. I’m being facetious, but getting bathroom “permission” is over the top for me.
I hear you on that one Doc, but I also understand where the restaurant is coming from. They’re going to have to go in and disinfect after you. This restuarant said they created a new employee classification - disinfectors - whose sole job is to clean and sanitize everything. I think all they’re trying to do is maintain social distancing and give the disinfector an opportunity to sanitize the restroom before the next person needs to use it.
I agree it is rather over the top, tho’
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If they’re cleaning the bathroom after every use, not cooperating would be obnoxious.
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If I accidentally wandered into a restaurant with this requirement, I’d comply, of course. But I wouldn’t return. Other restaurants are handling the bathroom sanitation requirement, which I believe is mandated for opening, without resorting to potty permission. It’s the responsibility of the patrons to maintain social distancing. It’s the responsibility of the restaurant to maintain sanitation in the restrooms. How they do that will vary from one to another, but there’s only so much the public will stand for in terms of the amount of personal degradation when visiting what’s supposed to be a place where you’ll have a pleasant time. The restaurants have a choice and the public has a choice.
Do you get offended at places that require a key for their bathrooms?
Have you ever asked Where’s your bathroom?
Personal Degradation? Really?
If you’re speaking for “the public” then I’m not the public because it seems like a total non-issue to me
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To me, this just seems like a way to ensure that there’s no pile-up at the entrance to the bathroom. “Taking a number,” if you will. But if you wanna regard it as
uh, ok. We all get to choose our own hill to die on.
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Was taken out to lunch at my favorite brew pub in Mt Shasta . It was so nice to sit down and be served after three months. No weirdo masks , gloves , or plexiglas. Just social distances in tables and booths . It was a great burger and beer .
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Places that require a key for the restrooms are of two kinds. One is where the restaurant would otherwise get people coming inside just to use them. I don’t usually go to places that have that problem, and don’t like it when I have to ask someone to get a key. The second is when the bathrooms are exterior to the restaurant space. There I don’t mind, the key is near the cashier perhaps, and some places just hang the key (with a gigantic handle) in a location that’s on the way. In those places you don’t usually have to ask for it; it’s obvious. One compromise would be to have red or green lights on the pathway to the restrooms, as in airplanes. It shows whether the bathrooms are occupied or if there’s one available, so you don’t go down the aisle and form a queue if not. But even in hospitals you don’t have to ask for a key. The door is either locked or unlocked if there’s just one toilet inside, or simply left unlocked if there are more than one.
Of course I ask “where’s the bathroom” when I don’t already know. Duh. In fact, when visiting another country, it’s one of the first things I learn in their language.
As to the sentence with “personal degradation” in it, well, that’s a bit on the heavy side. Bad choice of wording. Withdrawn, but the general idea isn’t. Maybe I should have said “annoyance” or something like that.
And I wasn’t “speaking for the public”, but it’s a fact that each restaurant has a choice as to how to deal with the requirements, and the public has a choice as to whether to go there or not. I fail to see how that can be debated. We’ll have to see how things play out.
Fair enough.
I just think there are plenty of situations in life where we announce our need to use the bathroom. Like at the gas station or asking for the code at grocery stores sometimes.
All I know is that if things go bad the restaurant will get blamed. Even if it’s a guest not properly distancing, respecting protocol, whatever. It will be the name of the restaurant blasted all over the media. So I don’t hold it against anyone for doing too much.
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