Weekday later dining doesn’t benefit bars and restaurants without terraces

THERE was a somewhat muted welcome to the decision that restaurants could reopen their terraces from 8pm to 10.30pm on Mondays to Thursdays but not at weekends at least until at least May 10.
Quite a few diners took advantage of this latest concession but the organisations representing the hospitality sector pointed out that some 80 per cent of bars and restaurants do not have terraces and are therefore still as badly off as they were in the lockdown.
It is reported that the leaders of the two main associations the Confederation of Balearic Business Associations (CAEB) and the Pimem federation of small to medium-sized businesses have been told by the Balearic Government that the matter of opening interiors will be discussed.
Clearly the Government wants to ensure that the spread of infection is kept as low as possible because of the possible influx of tourists, but this could rebound on the island if the tourists have nowhere to go in the evenings.
One suggestion is that interiors could be opened with guests accepted on an advance reservation basis.
Sadly, a number of restaurants who do have terraces have decided that it is not financially viable to close and then reopen several hours later as they can’t afford to keep their staff hanging around for just another two and half hours of service and not be able to benefit from weekend business.