Two restauranteurs in The Villages are gearing up for larger crowds in their dining rooms on Monday while another says it’s still not yet profitable to open his eateries.
The larger crowds are expected because Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Friday that restaurants can expanded their indoor dining capacity to 50 percent as Florida continues to reopen amid the COVID-19 pandemic. DeSantis originally allowed restaurants to open at 25 percent capacity on May 4 with strict social distancing rules in place. On Friday, he upped that capacity starting Monday with the premise that social distancing rules are still in place.
DeSantis said restaurants also can move forward with partitions between the booths and encouraged outdoor seating whenever possible, as COVID-19 is not as transmissible outdoors as indoors in an enclosed environment.
“All we’re trying to do is create a low-risk environment,” he said.
After hearing the announcement, FMK Restaurant Group owner Fred Karimipour said he was thrilled that the governor is allowing eateries to allow more customers into their establishments.
“We cannot wait to continue to serve our guests,” he said. “We have implemented multiple precautionary measures to ensure the safety of our guests.”
Karimipour said employees at all seven of his restaurants – Bluefin Grill & Bar in Brownwood, The Chop House at Lake Sumter Landing, Belle Glade Country Club, Bonifay Country Club, Evans Prairie Country Club, Orange Blossom Hills Country Club and Scooples Ice Cream Parlor – will continue to constantly sanitize surfaces throughout the eateries. His employees will have their temperatures checked when they arrive for work and will wear masks and gloves, which will be changed often. Disposable menus and tablecloths also will be use and takeout service will continue.
Gina Buell, who along with her husband Mike owns the City Fire locations in Lake Sumter Landing and Brownwood, said her staff is gearing up for Monday but is making sure that proper social distancing will continue to take place with the addition of more tables.
“We take that very seriously,” she said.
Buell said her employees will continue to constantly sanitize all surfaces, tables and chairs throughout the eatery. She said they will continue to have their temperatures taken, wear masks, frequently wash and sanitize their hands and maintain proper social distancing.
Buell said her customers also will continue to receive disposable menus, single-use cups, plastic utensils sealed in bags and all food put in to-go containers with clear lids and delivered to tables in bags. To-go orders and curbside pickup still will be available to customers who prefer to eat their meals at home.
Allen Musikantow, owner/operator of the three Cody’s Original Roadhouse restaurants in The Villages, said he isn’t ready to reopen his eateries – located in Brownwood, Lake Sumter Landing and the Mulberry Plaza – quite yet. He shut them down in March after saying the difficult decision was in the best interest of his employees and customers, as the staff had reached the point where it could no longer walk the line between serving customers and their safety. He also pointed out that his restaurants are sit-down establishments that offer entertainment and didn’t lend themselves to temporarily trying to survive on providing takeout service.
“At 75 percent we will set a date to open,” he said. “I think that financially, we need that many in our size restaurants.”
Musikantow said he’ll also be watching to see if Villagers will feel safe dining out again.
“I’m not a doctor,” Musikantow said recently. “I’m a restaurant operator and safety is the number one priority for us as we move forward.”
