Posted Jul 26, 2021, 8:56 PM
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Registered User
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Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 24,177
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Quote:
As more workers fall ill, Bay Area restaurateurs weigh a dramatic step: banning the unvaccinated
Janelle Bitker
July 23, 2021
Updated: July 26, 2021 11:39 a.m.
Bay Area restaurants are seeing reservations drop, with diners citing the highly contagious delta variant as their reason for canceling. Fully vaccinated employees are getting sick, forcing temporary closures at a rate that hasn’t been seen since early in the pandemic. Now, owners are debating what to do next.
A growing number of restaurants and bars have become vaccination-only establishments, requiring diners to flash their vaccine cards upon entry. But others say it’s not so easy due to logistics and potential customer backlash. Instead, they’re contemplating alternative measures like shutting down their indoor dining rooms, requiring double masks for staff or simply waiting to see how the new vaccine requirements play out at other businesses.
Owners already requiring proof of vaccination say it’s an effort to get somewhat out ahead of the delta variant since there’s still no official guidance from government agencies beyond a mask recommendation. Mayor London Breed said her office doesn’t have immediate plans to mandate that businesses require patrons to show proof of vaccination but is exploring “all options.” The Golden Gate Restaurant Association, the city’s restaurant industry group, is surveying members on the issue . . . .
“The whole idea is to keep our staff, who is completely vaccinated, safe and to keep people coming in safe,” said Marc Zimmerman, owner of San Francisco’s Gozu. The high-end restaurant started requiring proof of vaccination on Wednesday. “If we can get ahead and do a little self-policing — I’d hate to think about a shutdown at this point, but who knows?”
Restaurants are already feeling the financial hit of cautious diners canceling reservations. At Gozu, reservations were down by 60% this week compared to last week. On a normal Friday night, the restaurant draws about 50 reservations but this week has just 10. Zimmerman said diners who canceled by phone specifically said it was because of the delta variant.
Meanwhile, the no-show rate Wednesday at San Francisco Peruvian destination La Mar was almost 20%, abnormally high. At Oakland hot spot Sister, reservations were down by about 30% that day.
Earlier this week, Matt Reagan, co-owner of Oakland restaurants Palmetto and the Kon-Tiki, likened the vibe to March 2020. “You can see the storm is coming and no one has the courage to sound the alarm,” said Reagan, who instituted a vaccine policy in the hope of showing that his restaurants were taking the pandemic seriously . . . .
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https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/res...s-16335415.php
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