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The government decided last week to allow outdoor cafes to operate, further easing the quarantine imposed by the spread of COVID-19 and providing for the gradual opening of stores in supermarkets and markets.
Vilnius residents, who look forward to activities, seem to welcome the opening with joy.
“We really wanted to do it, it’s really fun to have the opportunity to never sit at home again.” 15 minutes said Ieva Vytaitė, 32, who works in the information technology field.
She is one of approximately 30 people who spent the evening at the neighborhood’s multi-table space for outdoor cafes, set up near the Angel of Užupis.
The woman said she was not afraid of getting infected and hoped to open outdoor cafes for some time.
“There is no fear when everyone meets all the security requirements. It is obvious that everything is fine,” I.Vytaitė said, looking at the neighboring tables.
The outdoor cafes will operate, at least for now, with some restrictions. They are allowed to work from 7 to 21 hours.
In addition, the tables may remain outside for at least two meters. No more than two people will sit at a table unless they are from the same household.
Meeting the security requirements set by the state was the biggest challenge, says Haroldas Arėška, co-owner of Špunka in Užupis, which serves five tables outside.
“A person does not want to commit a crime anywhere, but when the rules change quickly, it is difficult to do so,” said H.Arėška, who was behind the bar.
Arno Strumilos / 15min nuotr./Haroldas Arėška
“On the other hand, I understand, I am not saying that the wrong decisions here are due to those restrictions. I am not saying that I would have acted differently instead. I have no claims, as is allowed, so we work. Let me allow it. ”, He added.
Good luck with the weather
Vilnius Street, lined with bars, cafes and restaurants, has the same view.
At the Talutti Bakes ‘n’ Shakes City restaurant, all the outdoor terraces filled up at night and there was a queue for dinner nearby.
On Thursday morning, seeing the gloomy weather forecasts, the restaurant decided not to open, but changed its mind.
“It’s lucky,” laughs Matas Vasiliauskas, director of the institution.
According to him, as long as cafes can only operate outdoors, their owners will have to plan work according to the weather and not open on extremely rainy or cold days.
M.Vasiliauskas assured that although the government’s message about openness in the field was good, certain challenges arose.
Arno Strumila / 15min photo / Outdoor cafes
“We had to prepare a lot, dust and check the furniture. It was difficult to communicate with the authorities, we learned late about the detailed operational restrictions, ”said the manager of the restaurant on Vilniaus Street.
Additionally, every employee returning from downtime had to take a COVID-19 test and people, especially the elderly, had a difficult time registering.
Cafes in Lithuania have been closed since the beginning of November last year, when the quarantine was reintroduced in Lithuania due to the second wave of COVID-19. They could only be fed with food.
According to M. Vasiliauskas, it was difficult to survive this period.
“Most of the problems were psychological, with the employees, they were greatly affected by the quarantine, the workload increased a lot for some of them and we only had to defraud some people,” said the businessman.
The cafe, which has largely been idle for nearly half a year, gets going not just by pulling out dusty tables, but also looking for employees.
Some waiters, chefs or bartenders were in need of labor during the most difficult months, while other restaurants are planning to expand. You can read about it here.
On Thursday evening he visited downtown Vilnius. 15 minutes the videojournalist Lucrecius Tubys. You can watch his conversation with Mark Adam Harold, Chairman of the Vilnius Night Alliance, about restrictions on the operation of outdoor cafes that raise questions for the industry below.
VIDEO: The bars, which opened on Thursday, questioned the government’s decisions: “Did you read what you saw?”
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