The Tribune

By TANYA SMITH-CARTWRIGHT

tsmith-cartwright@tribunemedia.net

RESTRICTIONS banning indoor dining have now been lifted for those who are fully vaccinated, but some restaurants seem sceptical about embracing it.

The Tribune spoke with a few restaurants yesterday on the change, some who said they are not going to take part in the move at all right now.

Compass Point’s general manager, Phil Smith said it really does not make much difference to his establishment.

“I really don’t see it making much difference just now,” he said. “We have a fairly large outdoor seating area. We have not filled to capacity for some time. We will just continue to do the outdoor (dining) until we can open up and operate as we have before.

“The indoor dining accounts for perhaps 25 percent of our seating availability. We are certainly far below 75 percent of our restaurant business, so opening the indoor dining for persons who are able to dine with us indoors would present some difficulty in management of that process and one that we will likely just not take on right now.

“We will not take advantage of it and I don’t see how that can be advantageous to us at all right now.”

The management at Spritz Wine Bar Restaurant is pretty much in a similar position. Spritz supervisor, Anthony Thompson, said the restaurant does not want to discriminate.

“To my knowledge, the manager was saying he has to wait and see how that is going to play out,” Mr Thompson said. “You don’t want to start something and everyone sees those who are sitting inside and say, ‘hey why can’t we dine inside too?’ So he says, before we fully open inside we (are) going to wait until we get to the point of no restrictions so there cannot be any discriminating.”

Enrico Gazoroli, owner of Graycliff restaurant, is not really affected by the restriction lift, but is happy for it as he says it will make tourists feel more comfortable.

“Because we are a hotel, we were allowed indoor dining, however we have a nurse here who was testing (for COVID-19),” Mr Garzaroli said. “So even though we are not directly affected we are very pleased with the new measures that make the tourists more at ease. Now they won’t feel oppressed by the measures.

“Even though we didn’t have that constraint here at Graycliff, I am sure the tourists will feel a lot better by this. Anything that is easier mentally for the tourists will help a lot. They have been under oppression because of COVID for a while now and everywhere they went there were restrictions telling them they can’t do this and they can’t do that. So they will now come here to The Bahamas, spend and enjoy and this should make them happy.”

Graycliff recently became the only hotel and restaurant in the country to be awarded by the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) for being COVID compliant.

CARPHA is the new single regional public health agency for the Caribbean.

An emergency order signed by Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis on Sunday lifted the ban on indoor dining, making it accessible to those who are fully vaccinated.

“A restaurant may operate on Sundays, between the hours of 6am and 9pm utilising drive-through, takeaway and outdoor dining only,” the order states.

“A restaurant may operate utilising indoor dining provided that all patrons inside are fully vaccinated and provide documentary evidence of such vaccination.”