Restaurants, cafes table proposals for reopening

Burak Coşan - ISTANBUL

Suffering from the fallout caused by the coronavirus-related restrictions, restaurant and café owners in Turkey are now seeking ways to reopen, putting forward proposals that may help them get back to business.

As part of the wider measures the government introduced to bring the spread of COVID-19 under control, restaurants and cafes are only allowed to provide takeaway and delivery services.

Despite the government’s financial support, companies operating in the industry, which some 2 million families are depended on for their livelihood, are struggling to keep their businesses afloat. Many restaurants, however, lack enough resources and means to provide even delivery services, facing significant decline in revenues, failing to pay rents.

In the face of those pressing conditions amid the outbreak, restaurant and café owners put forward a list of proposals which they think could help them reopen their businesses.

Their offers include an immediate reopening of restaurants under “very strict rules” and suggest that those that do not follow the rules should be closed.

Customers should be admitted to restaurants with a valid HES code, provided through an application which tracks the contraction of the COVID-19 virus, they proposed.

The list also suggested that people employed in the industry will be given priority in the virus vaccination program, which will help reduce risks.

Restaurant owners also said hygiene rules must be implemented very strictly and that tables should be set apart according to social distancing rules and those who violate this rule should be fined.

Sector representatives warned that the current situation is unsustainable for much of the businesses and many of them may not survive.