NEW DELHI: Restaurants had barely started breathing without life support in March when a new surge in coronavirus infections pushed them back into the ICU.
Many outlets closed permanently and hundreds of jobs were lost.
"Allowing bars and restaurants to function till 1 am is a welcome return to normalcy. The 10 pm deadline for shutting shop in force till this point effectively meant severely curtailing their business since dinner is their peak earning time. The Covid situation may have compelled the government to impose such restrictions in the past, but with cases and deaths declining to very manageable levels, the sooner we return to normal, the better for businesses and livelihoods. Of course, necessary precautions must continue to be taken.-TimesView"
Those that did open had to contend with low patronage, 50% cap on seating and early closing times.
There was some relief after relaxation of lockdown, but restaurants still struggled with having to pull the shutters down hours before normal time, killing the dinner sales golden goose that contributed almost 70% of their daily business.
The recent Delhi Disaster Management Authority order restoring normal hours of operations is, therefore, being met with a sigh of relief.
This will boost the beleaguered industry, where many operators were on their last leg, said Zorawar Kalra of Massive Restaurants.
He explained that the extended operating time would mean well spread-out dinner operations, so no crowding and, therefore, in tune with Covid-19 protocols.
Apart from shutting shop, many operators had either delayed their new projects or cancelled them altogether fearing an uncertain market.
A restaurateur said the various restrictions had reduced restaurants to mere lunch canteens with little or no dinner sales, forced to take the last orders at 9.30pm to enable closing down at the stipulated 10pm. Most outlets had to cut expenses, and sadly among the first casualties were the staffers.
Deepak Bhatia, vice-president (operations), Lite Bite Foods, pointed out that even an additional hour of operation would mean a big boost in dining sales. He now hopes for better footfall at malls and markets.
“Dining-in revenue will go up and we will be able to serve more customers while following the necessary protocols,” he said.
Terming the extension of working hours as an extremely encouraging move for the food and beverages industry, Satyajit Dhingra, chief regional officer (north), Impresario Handmade Restaurants, noted that with the festive season round the corner and with daily cases of fresh Covid infection reducing in the city, people were looking forward to dining out.
“A lot of our dinner guests, at both Social and Smoke House Deli, have been wanting to stay past 10pm,” Dhingra said.
“Our being operational for longer will allow them to extend their nights out. It also gives us room to cater to our guests comfortably without overcrowding the rooms at any point.”
