France’s restaurants may have a new way of dining whilst protecting customers thanks to designer Christopher Gernigon

France’s restaurants may have a new way of dining whilst protecting customers thanks to designer Christopher Gernigon.

FRENCH designer Christopher Gernigon’s Plexiglas domes to protect diners from coronavirus were on show in a Paris restaurant this week.

Designer, Gernigon yesterday (May 27) presented a new, sanitary solution to dining that might give an idea of how restaurants can adapt to Covid health measures as they get ready to reopen in France.

The designs, which resemble a transparent dome, were on display in Parisian restaurant H.A.N.D. The domes have an opening in the back, that hang over individual diners, encasing them in their own protective enclosed space.

Gernigon explained: “It’s like a lampshade that hangs from the ceiling, except the back is open, it’s transparent and you put it over clients’ heads.”

Named Plex’eat, the domes are suspended from the ceiling. According to the designer, they are simple to clean, easy to install and allow restaurants to provide protection in response to the Covid crisis. When inside, diners are still able to hear and hold conversations with others, also inside their own domes.

Gernigon claims his creation could even improve the gastronomical experience as when inside the dome, he says: “The smell of the food rises.”

Matthieu Manzoni, Manager of H.A.N.D. is convinced by Plex’est. He said: “I’ve found a solution that suits me.”

Even at a cost of €160 per dome, he believes that the Plex’eats could mean he “loses almost no covers.”

Meanwhile, he estimates that current restrictions imposed on restaurants in Paris, mean H.A.N.D. is losing more than 50 per cent of its customers each week.