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Whenever LA Restaurants Reopen, They'll Be Half-Full
A coronavirus-themed burger is pictured at the Pizza Home restaurant in Hanoi on March 26, 2020. MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images
There's no target date yet for when restaurants in Los Angeles (and throughout California) might reopen but whenever they do, dining out will be a very different experience than it was before the coronavirus pandemic.
Restaurants that are still hanging on will likely be required to minimize the number of customers who can sit down to eat, which might mean rearranging or redesigning dining rooms. Servers and other workers may have to wear masks and gloves. Establishments might be required to check patrons' temperatures at the door.
Dr. Sonia Angell, the director of the state's Department of Public Health said:
"It's about going forward in ways that are healthy for all of us but it won't look the same. Restaurants will be likely to reopen but perhaps they'll have fewer tables, creating greater opportunity for physical distancing."
Newsom didn't give a specific date but said that if three things happen over the next two weeks:
- If hospitalization and ICU numbers decline
- If contact tracing infrastructure is ready
- And if personal protective equipment is available
Then, he will be able to provide a timeline in the first week of May.
Newsom also emphasized that whenever restaurants and other businesses begin reopening, the new normal will be anything but.
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"You may be having dinner with a waiter wearing gloves, maybe a face mask. Dinner where the menu is disposable, where half of the tables in that restaurant no longer appear, where your temperature is checked before you walk in to the establishment. These are likely scenarios as we begin to process the next phase and next iteration," Newsom said.
Face coverings will also likely become common in public, so it won't just be your waiter sporting one — you'll probably be wearing one, too.
READ MORE OF OUR CORONAVIRUS & FOOD COVERAGE:
- A No-Stress Guide To Grocery Shopping During The Coronavirus Pandemic
- Asian Grocery Stores In The Time Of Coronavirus
- How Carnicerias, Liquor Stores, Tienditas And Latino Supermarkets Are Feeding Their Neighborhoods
- How You Can Help Feed Our Health Care Workers
- SoCal Distilleries Start Making Hand Sanitizer Instead Of Liquor
- How LA's Restaurant Industry Is Trying To Save Itself — And What You Can Do To Help
- Little Tokyo Fights To Preserve Its Soul In Face of Coronavirus
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