Patio season is already in full swing in some parts of the country, and gearing up in others as restaurants prepare to host dine-in guests once again. In an attempt to make the most of reduced capacity, some restaurants and bars are setting up temporary seating on sidewalks, parking spaces and streets.
But is it safe to pull up a chair?
Eating a meal or sipping a pint outside carries less risk of transmitting COVID-19 than sitting inside a restaurant, says Jeffrey Farber , a professor of food microbiology at the University of Guelph. “If you look at the whole risk spectrum,” he says, “definitely being outdoors lowers your risk by quite a bit.”
Being in the open air reduces the chance of contagion, although it doesn’t eliminate it, Farber emphasizes. Taking advantage of expanded patios as the summer nears is a viable option, however, and there are steps you can take to minimize risk.
“Firstly, people need to feel comfortable,” says Farber. “They need to go to a restaurant that they feel is taking things very seriously — and I know many of them are. So you don’t want to see, for example, lineups in front of the restaurant where people are not physical distancing.”
Even in outdoor spaces, it’s important for there to be enough room around tables to ensure staff and guests can maintain a distance. “When you’re looking at the patio, you want to see that people are well spread out,” says Farber. “And that there are not tables containing (large groups of) people.”
Guests should also be aware of high-touch areas, he adds. Items like salt and pepper shakers, and bottles of condiments that were once commonplace should no longer be on patio tables. When choosing a restaurant, Farber recommends those making it clear that no one with fever symptoms should enter. Additionally, they should be taking measures to limit contact between staff and guests.
He also suggests looking for precautions such as providing hand sanitizer for patrons to use upon entering the restaurant. Additionally, there should be safety protocols in place to minimize the amount of traffic to and from, and in the washroom — and directional arrows at entrances and exits to indicate how people should move through the space.
Some restaurants have installed transparent dividers to separate patrons on patios, a move Farber supports: “Anything you can use to separate people and air flow from each other, is a risk-reduction measure that makes sense to me from a biological standpoint.”
The same cannot be said for the private-yet-public outdoor dining options that have started appearing around the world, such as “ quarantine greenhouses ” and geodesic domes. Unless these enclosures have adequate air circulation, he says, they’re essentially an indoor experience outside, which isn’t ideal when it comes to preventing transmission of COVID-19.
“You are insulating yourself from other people,”says Farber, “but you have to make sure that those (in the enclosure) are people that you know — say within your own family — to have any sense of safety or security that you are reducing your risk by being outside in these domes.”
In the spirit of “you protect me and I protect you,” he adds that both servers and guests should wear masks: “We know they are not foolproof but they can help reduce transmission.” When you’re taking off your mask to eat or drink, ensure you don’t touch the front and store it securely — Farber likes to use a clean plastic sandwich bag.
Patio season, after all, is about fun, and ensuring that everyone is as relaxed as possible is key. If you’re ready to return to restaurants , your best plan of attack is to conduct a quick assessment of the environment, Farber says, in order to gauge your comfort level. Above all else, choose a patio “where you’re going to feel safe and enjoy yourself.”
Copyright Postmedia Network Inc., 2020
