Sanlitun Bars May Remain Closed for at Least Another 2 Weeks
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In an announcement sent to Beijing's bars and restaurants on Tuesday, the government has outlined requirements for the reopening of bars in the city, many of which have been closed since the second outbreak of coronavirus three weeks ago.
The message, which was transmitted via a WeChat group set up specifically to relay official notices to members of the city's food and beverage industry, details how a plan for the resumption of bars will be released on Jul 20. Before then, “Each bar must submit a business application indicating whether it is a bar or a restaurant,” after which, the official departments will work with the venue towards reopening.
The notice goes on to say that in order for a venue to eventually reopen they must meet all epidemic prevention standards, and that inspectors will begin inspections next week. The latest round of restrictions has affected nearly all restaurants and bars in the Sanlitun area as well as further afield, whether it's in regards to banning the sale of hard liquor, enforcing a strict closing time of 10pm, or complete closure of the venue until further notice.So far the decision as to why certain venues can remain open and others must close has been largely opaque, leading to confusion among venue owners, many of whom were caught off guard when all F&B businesses in the city were forced to close so that staff could go in for testing on Jun 18. The official line is that no venue can sell alcohol to customers without the consumption of food, but such a policy does not explain the discrepancy in closures within specific areas. For example, while Homeplate and Taco Bar remain open in Courtyard 4, The Local sits closed, and in Nali Patio El Barrio and Bottega are shuttered while neighboring restaurants continue to operate.
Chandler Jurinka, co-founder of Slow Boat Brewery, whose Sanlitun and Maizidian venues are currently closed but Dengshikou taproom remains open, sheds some light on these apparent inconsistencies, describing to the Beijinger how in each area of the city "the community leader must decide if opening a business possesses a threat to its residents and the city as a whole," and that "Sometimes the reasoning to open or close them isn’t clear." Jurinka adds that "[Slow Boat] supports the long-term efforts to make Beijing a safe place to live and do business and hope to open again as soon as possible."
Meanwhile, despite the unfortunate effects that forced closure has on businesses' bottom line, some, especially those lucky enough to have multiple venues, are trying to see the silver lining in a cloudy situation.
Jing-A's co-founder Alex Acker tells the Beijinger that the Xingfucun branch of the craft brewery has "been able to do takeout and delivery for the last week or so," and that because the reopening of that venue was "until further notice," they decided to move many regular events to their unaffected Longfusi location as well as taking the opportunity to work "on some bolder brews and experiment with new dishes."
In light of the government's priority of keeping infections as close to zero as possible, it looks to be a while before the city's bars are back up and running as usual.READ: COVID-19 Catch-Up: One Last High-Risk Zone, Train Passengers No Longer Need Testing
Image: elias (via Unsplash)
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