From 1 June restaurants, cafes, bars and other restaurants will be able to receive and serve up to 20 people at a time.
This will go ahead under specific conditions in order to keep the tyrannous virus unarmed.
If the pandemic continues to show little signs of reemerging by 22 June the number of patrons will increase to 50 and from mid-July to 100.
The news is encouraging for both owners and their customers who were deprived of what they knew as ‘normal’.
Diverting from the norm
“Truthfully, the whole situation caught us off guard. It is not easy to see tables and chairs empty every day. The pleasant thing is that we met quickly and decided to face the situation bravely although unprepared. Of course, our customers also helped us a lot, who supported us and gave us, in essence, the drive to move forward and to not close our doors”, says Theio Theo’s head of the family business, Theodoros Poulakida.
READ MORE: Victoria’s cafes, restaurants and pubs to reopen on 1 June
Time to reinvent
Regardless of the circumstances the businessman confesses, has contributed to seeing and discovering their own reserves of strength, goodwill and humanity and the good elements of not only their character, but also that of others.
None of their partners or suppliers, such as the fish mongers, have lost their courage and that has been contagious.
“This new experience also gave us the time to feel, discover and want to implement new things that will take the business to another level. At this time, I consider it a period of rebirth,” concludes Mr Poulakida.
READ MORE: Neos Kosmos supports Greek restaurants that are open for business: See our jumbo guide
Not without humour
Famous restaurateur Giannis Rerakis from Philellene approaches the invincible virus with his Cretan spirit and his well-known humour.
“I didn’t even think for a moment to shut down, maybe because by nature I’m optimistic and resilient. I also have, I want to believe, some humour that I used, which turned out to be really effective,” he says.
“I decided to keep the space open, to change the menu so that I could meet the new conditions and give new and delicious things for my customers to take home. All fresh, such as artichokes, beans and greens. Many also took whole pan fulls and distributed them to elderly people who could not leave their homes under the new conditions.”
He smiles and proudly shows me the T-shirt that overflows with his humour.
“These are unprecedented situations. I have 20 years in the field and I have never had an experience reminiscent, even in the slightest, of what we are going through today. During the first week, I couldn’t believe what was happening. I put the key in the door and couldn’t believe it. But to close the doors is only on part of the conversation. I’m not alone. There are people who eat bread here. Students who, if left unemployed, are also deprived of this food. These are unprecedented situations that we are called upon to deal with in the best way we can.”
With the lights off
The door of Malvern’s Bistro Thierry have been closed since 21 March.
With the lights off, the heavy black door locked and the elegant figures of the guests invisible, the place itself exudes a melancholic, almost mournful atmosphere.
What would 1 June mean for owner Thierry?
“It’s worrying. Twenty people in this space? Can you imagine? Then there is the practical part. Expenses. How will they be covered? Lucky if we cover some of them in the second phase. We have to be very careful to get there,” he says.
Despite the hardship, we always find the courage to carry on.