Relief has washed over restaurant owners with a “very good vibe” felt across the sector, as diners flock to eat out after weeks of having to make do with takeaway food and home deliveries.
Restaurants reopened last Monday, two months after the country went into shutdown amid the worst wave of COVID-19 infections. The move is the first in a series of steps in the country’s reopening plan for the catering and accommodation industry.
Association of Catering Establishments (ACE) spokesperson Matthew Pace said there was “no comparison” to the earlier reopening of the sector after the 2020 closure, describing the feeling among restaurants right now as a “very good vibe”.
“Last year, it took us around five weeks to start seeing some business. This year is clearly different. People want to go out, even if we’re only open until 5pm,” Pace said.
Restaurants must still close at 5pm and can only offer takeaway food after that. On May 24, they will be allowed to serve diners until midnight. For now, only tables of four are permitted.
People want to go out, even if we’re only open until 5pm
The majority of diners were understanding of this rule, Pace said, although others cancelled when told that a party of eight had to be split into two groups.
“Overall, most people know what the rules are and that these must be followed,” he said.
The busiest areas were unsurprisingly Valletta, Sliema and St Julian’s, although restaurants in other, less central areas also reported positive results in the first few days after reopening.
“For a Monday, many restaurants had a good turnout. Some had never opened for lunch before while others are normally shut on Mondays. But as happened with delivery service earlier on in the pandemic, people have adapted,” Pace said.
New challenges
For Pablo Kuilboer, who runs pizzeria Salumeria, the restricted opening times represent a challenge.
Kuilboer's restaurant has never operated as a lunch venue before, meaning he and his team had to completely rework their business operation while also remarketing his place as a lunch venue, for what he imagines will only be a short time.
That said, he conceded that it was far worse for those operators that had still been ordered shut.
“My heart still goes to all those others businesses in the industry that haven’t been opened yet, I really believe that we should find a way to allow everyone to be able to operate in some way or another,” he said.
Emma Demarco of popular San Gwann eatery Emma’s Kitchen said it was a huge relief to be back to business.
Her establishment caters mostly for brunch and lunch service and so the 5pm cut-off time has not had a major impact on her business.
“It’s such a relief to have the restaurant back to its usual operations again, serving our regulars and getting back into the swing of things. Our customers seem to be really excited to be back, we have high hopes for the coming weeks," she said.
Meanwhile, Rafel Sammut, chef and patron of restaurant Briju, said it was still too early to gauge the impact of the re-opening.
“We have only been back for two days now, so it’s too soon to be able to tell,” he said.
Sammut said that, like many others, his restaurant normally stops lunch service at this time of year and shifts only to dinner.
The new, lunch-only setup meant that this year things are going to have to go a little differently for Sammut and his team.
Restaurant owners are now eagerly waiting for government vouchers which, according to Prime Minister Robert Abela, should start being handed out to the public on June 7.
That same day, bars are set to reopen after being shuttered since October.
The vouchers – €60 to be spent in catering establishments and €40 for retail outlets – are part of efforts to get the economy up and running after the closures brought about by the pandemic.