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COVID-19 and Restaurants


DonRocks

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4 hours ago, Count Bobulescu said:
With the caveat that prediction (especially about the future) is difficult, one of the editors of the Rabo bank quarterly report on the wine industry, recently told a California audience they don't believe the on premise sector will recover to pre Covid levels before the end of 2022. That's the good news. Black Box Intelligence, which researches only the restaurant industry, has a time scale of 2024 to 2025+ depending on how the virus is contained.

It will be easier for a restaurant to return to pre-COVID levels when half the competition no longer exists.

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On 7/21/2020 at 10:49 PM, DonRocks said:

It will be easier for a restaurant to return to pre-COVID levels when half the competition no longer exists.

That is true.  I am generally pretty particular about the places I am supporting during this mess. I feel awful for not dining in at restaurants because I crave the experience, but also because I know I am not spending as much. I order from the places still doing carryout-take-away and ordering too much and tipping well. But to get the places I really want to survive as much as possible, I have to drive to DC and shuttle it home. I do this, but not enough.

Anyway, I would encourage folks to support as much as possible the places you want to survive more than supporting a wide variety of places (your food cravings notwithstanding, of course).

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With forecasted warm weekend, I booked a reservation for outdoor dining at RPM tomorrow.  When checking out their menu, the website offered a $25 gift for the purchase of a $100 gift certificate.  So why shouldn't I buy one of their $100 gift certificates for myself and get $25 free?  They're also charging a 4% Covid surcharge.  I don't know if I missed some small print....

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In Annapolis many restaurants now have tents for additional Covid spaced seating.  I am concerned that the air circulation in those tents is not any better then inside.

At least one place, Soul, state BYOB for out door dining under the heat lamps.  Bring Your Own Blanket.

We do try to bring in from a local non-chain establishment once a week.  Also part of a biweekly CSA and have already paid for next year.  

I did become a founding member of our 1st brewpub, Forward Brewing and will do my part to keep them in business.

Lastly, I can see the floor in our wine cellar. Consumption is up while purchases are down.  

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Danny Meyer wants proof of vaccination to eat in his restaurant.

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“We feel like we’ve got an amazing responsibility to keep our staff members and our guests safe, and that’s what we’re going to do,” Meyer said in an interview with CNBC.

I'm just trying to test the logic of that statement.  Vaccinated people can still get covid and spread covid.  In fact, I see lots of vaccinated people who don't wear masks in tight quarters.  I'm leary of all people who don't social distance or wear masks (because my kids aren't vaccinated), including those who are vaccinated.  I guess we won't be eating at Maialino Mare for a while.

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Just last night, the Nationals game slated to happen in Philadelphia was rescheduled due to a coronavirus outbreak within the DC team. The club’s misfortunes started during Tuesday’s game, when shortstop Trea Turner was removed from the first inning after receiving a positive Covid test. According to manager Dave Martinez, another 11 players and staff members have since tested positive. (Martinez believes only one of the 12 people are unvaccinated). As a result, the squad was forced to postpone their Wednesday face-off against the Phillies—the second time this season the Nats have delayed a game due to the virus.

This paragraph from Washingtonian just confirmed that vaccinated people are catching and spreading covid.

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19 hours ago, Ericandblueboy said:

Danny Meyer wants proof of vaccination to eat in his restaurant.

I'm just trying to test the logic of that statement.  Vaccinated people can still get covid and spread covid.  In fact, I see lots of vaccinated people who don't wear masks in tight quarters.  I'm leary of all people who don't social distance or wear masks (because my kids aren't vaccinated), including those who are vaccinated.  I guess we won't be eating at Maialino Mare for a while.

This paragraph from Washingtonian just confirmed that vaccinated people are catching and spreading covid.

Well - if you're going to pick one intervention, it's probably going to be vaccination - with a caveat.  What I've read is that virtually all of the baseball players received J&J vaccines, which was only about 65% effective to begin with.  Good, but not great.  Pfizer and Moderna were more like 95% effective.  The problem now is Delta.  Delta is just hitting the US, so no data on what happens when Delta encounters a single dose vaccination like J&J.  In the UK, though, Delta has been shown to reduce a single shot of Astra-Zeneca to 30% effectiveness (vs. 70%+ against earlier variants).  J&J and AZ aren't the same, but they're really similar.  

So I think the clarification in my mind is that Pfizer and Moderna - with 90%+ effectiveness- are far more effective than masks - at 70% effectiveness if worn correctly.  Ultimately, Danny Meyer is making a bet that he can attract more customers who will embrace the sense of security offered by vaccines, than he could distancing everyone and requiring masks when not eating (which always struck me as more theater than actual prevention - what about the fact that you're eating without one?).  He'll absolutely turn off those who object to vaccine passports, but is that really a concern in NYC?

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Just back from NYC and saw several restaurants that were vaccine only dining, or you needed to provide proof of vaccination, or only vaccinated people could eat inside and non-vaccinated eat outside.  I haven't seen DC restaurants doing this as much.

That said, no one asked us for proof of vaccination the entire time we were there.  

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1 hour ago, zgast said:

Well - if you're going to pick one intervention, it's probably going to be vaccination - with a caveat. 

So I think the clarification in my mind is that Pfizer and Moderna - with 90%+ effectiveness- are far more effective than masks - at 70% effectiveness if worn correctly.  

It's a complicated situation with many factors to compare vaccination with wearing masks. Factors such as distance between people, duration of that encounter, and air flow play such an important factor. Additionally, HVAC filtration systems capability, i.e. regular level filtration, HEPA or even HyperHEPA makes a substantial difference with number of people indoors.

Ideally, with the Delta variant, people would be vaccinated and wear masks. 

However all masks are not created equal. Aaron Collins has been doing a great job on his youtube channel scientifically verifying the capacities of masks. 

Kids Masks, Ultra-breathable and More

Mask Review- More KF94s...

 

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On 8/4/2021 at 3:01 PM, Keithstg said:

I am not surprised. I don't want to have to be masked over dinner. I really want the possibility of places with vax requirements and the ability to go mask free. But I will do what I have to. I will just go out less, sit outside more, and go back to more takeout.

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I just went to Maialino Mare's reservation page, which says only people over 12 need proof of vaccination.   So I can take my kids to MM.  I hope other restaurants similarly exempt children under 12.

Quote

Things went more smoothly over at 2Amys. The popular pizza restaurant only requires vaccination for indoor seating, while the unvaccinated—including children who aren’t eligible for the shot—are restricted to the outdoor patio.

“We’ve been spending almost a year and a half just trying to keep my staff safe… Why start being stupid now? Why take any unnecessary risks?,” says 2Amys owner Peter Pastan. “We have a lot of customers that are grateful that we’re doing it.”

So vaccinated people generally are less likely than non-vaccinated to spread covid.  I suspect non-vaccinated people who mask up are even less likely to get and spread covid than vaccinated people who don't mask up.  It's a good thing that I don't live near 2Amys and haven't been there in ages. 

 

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