70% of Barcelona's and restaurants reopen, but request longer opening hours

BarcelonaOn Monday, 70% of the bars and restaurants in the city of Barcelona reopened after forty days of restrictions in which they had to keep the premises closed with the exception of the preparation of takeaway food or home delivery, according to the calculation made public by the Gremi de Restauració de Barcelona.

The president of the entity, Roger Pallarols, has insisted that the government should study "the extension of opening hours until 00.00 h and the consequent modification of the curfew, in time for December bank holidays and the beginning of the Christmas campaign". For the time being, until 7 December, establishments may be open throughout Catalonia from 6.00 a.m. to 9.30 p.m., a schedule that affects those restaurants with a larger part of the business focused on preparing dinners.

The capacity will be limited to 30% inside the premises, but thethere is not limit on outdoor seating, as the risk of contagion is lower.

Despite the reopening, which will be extended in the coming weeks if the health situation allows it, the sector asks the Government of Catalonia to speed up the easing of lockdown in order to help keep many companies in the sector operating. "There are many businesses for whom reopening is not viable with current restrictions," adds Pallarols in a statement. According to the employers, the workers of these establishments "continue to be affected by the furlough scheme, while the company's debt continues to grow.

Last week the sector had a head-on collision with the government after a much more restrictive draft plan was leaked to the media. The indignation of the employers' associations led to a meeting of business representatives from the restaurant and hotel industry with several senior members of the Catalan executive - among whom were the ministers of Economy, Business, Health and the Interior - to convey their frustration and demand a longer opening hours.

The reopening of these businesses, however, has been uneven depending on the area of the city. Despite the fact that conditions are the same for all establishments, bars and restaurants in the more touristy neighbourhoods have opened less than those in other areas of the Catalan capital, where the influx of customers to the premises has not been so affected by the disappearance of tourists, according to the ACN.

Covered outdoor seating will have to comply with indoor restrictions

The Minister of Home Affairs, Miquel Sàmper, has warned all bars and restaurants not to close off outddoor seating, despite the cold, because "ventilation is a key and fundamental element". "Let's not forget that outdoor seating must have at least two open sides for ventilation", he said, and warned that if this does not happen and the restaurateurs close off outdoor seating, "it will be considered to have the same parameters as indoors and the indoor capacity set by Procicat will have to be applied", in other words, reducing the capacity to 30%. "We call for real compliance and to have at least two open sides," said the Minister, reports Laia Vicens.

Call for responsibility

The union has also called on restaurateurs to act "responsibly" in applying "diligently" the various health measures imposed by the government's decree. Thus, Catalan bars and restaurants must maintain a distance of two meters between diners at different tables, wear a mask while not eating and allow hand cleaning with disinfectants.

In addition, the employers also call on customers to behave with "co-responsibility" when they are in a place, especially in groups of more than four diners, who have to be from the same cohabitation group.