BATAVIA, N.Y. (WKBW) — It’s been about three months since many sat inside a restaurant and had food and a beverage.
The Finger Lakes region entered phase 3 this morning which means you can once again dine in at local restaurants.
“It’s great to b e able to get out, it’s a nice day,” said James Smallwood from Rochester. “We go out often, and this is nice.”
For those behind the scenes, like Main Street Pizza Co. owner Victor Marchese, re-opening is like the first day of school.
“I haven’t been here in three months,” he said. “We’re now doing new things like sanitizing the tables every hour, starting a cleaning log, doors, bathrooms.”
At Islands Hawaiian Grill, this experience has taught owners Kourtney and Caitlin Kunichika how to adapt to the new normal. They’ve been working hard to brand their business while still staying open during the pandemic.
“We tried to be creative,” they said. “We post every single day on social media. We designated one day a week to delivering outside the area. It’s been so long. We’re going on 100 days of doing delivery and to go.
Tables in the restaurants are six feet apart and patrons must wear a mask when entering and exiting the building.
The WNY region is usually behind the finger lakes region a couple days, so as soon as next week, our restaurants could be open for dining.
