While they are eager to open some Illawarra eateries have decided to wait until social distancing restrictions ease further.
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Harbourfront Restaurant, South on Albany and BabyFace Kitchen are among those who have posted on social media that they intend to hold off a little longer before they introduce dine-in again.
Lorraine Mercuri and Max Borsato at Northbeach Pavilion said the Italian restaurant is going to wait until at least early June.
"We prefer to take a cautious and considered view on when to open. We support the easing measures which are sensible for some operators but not for others. We fall into the latter group," Mrs Mercuri said.
"Although we will place tables out on the boardwalk for up to 10 people for our kiosk customers. And will respect social distancing.
"Our venue seats up to 140 people and for the past six weeks we have, like others, had to reshape our business model to flex with the safety measures for Covid-19, care for our team and customers and ensure that we keep the wheels in motion looking at how we can evolve our business for the new world".
Mrs Mercuri said that has taken time and Northbeach Pavilion is going to take more to make sure any further changes are done carefully and with everyone's safety in mind.
"We don't want to open our doors only to close again because of a spike in cases. This would not be good for anyone. We remain hopeful and positive about a review of stage 2 and 3.
"For the moment we will remain with the current offering of our daily kiosk takeaway and restaurant takeaway and home delivery Fridays to Sunday from 5pm. And placing tables out on the boardwalk that can seat 10 customers at a time".
Mrs Mercuri said while it would be great to welcome customers back, introducing table service for up to 10 people at a time, even with consecutive seatings would adversely affect the viability of the venue.
"But we have been buoyed by the eagerness of our customers to return. We will continue to reshape our business to keep active and engaged,
"It is a challenging environment even with stage one easing. If larger venue can host more then 10 people and respect social distancing then it would be more economically viable to open then. Our restaurant could seat up to 60 customers at any one time whilst respecting safety measures. Therefore we are inclined to be more cautious in our return to trade and open later.
"Our restaurant offers shared platters and grazing offerings. This is part of the whole experience of breaking bread at the dinner table with your family and friends. This is part of our DNA so we need to think hard about what is going to be the winning formula moving forward.
"Our team are doing an incredible job. This time is not about profits. It is about engagement, continuity, staying connected and keeping afloat.
"Jobkeeper is a life line and Australia is one of the most proactive countries in the fight against COVID-19.
"We are positive about the future and remain responsible in our roll- out of our venue for the future.
"We hope to welcome our customers back soon. In the meantime we will be supporting those local venues opening this week and getting a quick bite to eat and drink along with responsible socialising".
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