Placing Barriers will Relax 6-foot Rule in NH Restaurants

I wrote last week about the challenges that colder weather will bring to restaurants in New Hampshire.  New England ingenuity has prevailed.  Never underestimate New Englanders.  According to WMUR.com, placing barriers between seating areas will allow patrons to be seated closer together.  I suppose this will be a boom to the plexiglass industry. The COVID-19 restrictions on restaurants had been relaxed to allow restaurants to operate at 100% capacity but the sticking point was that customers had to be seated at least 6 feet apart.

Restaurants were just not originally designed for that.  New guidelines state that the tables can be placed closer together if there is some sort of physical barrier between the tables. These new guidelines are set to start October 1 and were put in place with the blessing of public health officials.  This will give a much need bit of relief to restaurant owners that may have to curtail their outdoor dining spaces as the weather turns colder.

Gov. Chris Sununu said, “We do continue to see positive data in restaurants.  They are currently not a source of widespread transmission.  We’ve seen this model enacted in other places across the New England region and across the county very successfully,” per reporting from WMUR.com.  While the dining experience may look a little different, it could be a big help to those restaurants that are struggling.  New Hampshire has worked smart to keep the infection rate low in our state.  The new guidelines should help New Hampshire restaurants though the colder fall and winter seasons.