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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
National
Darragh Berry

The Irish bars where you don't have to eat food to drink in Level 3 lockdown

These are the Dublin pubs where you no longer have to eat in order to drink in Level 3 lockdown.

Under current restriction rules in December, a meal worth €9 must be purchased by customers looking to drink alcohol in a pub or restaurant in Ireland.

But The Camden and Oscar's Bar Cafe will no longer be forcing people to eat food if they are looking to lush on cocktails and pints, Dublin Live reports.

Instead, they have introduced the option of paying a €9 fee or meal for non-hungry drinkers which will go to differing charities in the capital.

The Camden said that they were "shocked" by the amount of good food ending up in the bin and decided to start the initiative in order to combat the food wastage.

They said: "Since we opened last Friday, quite a lot of good food remains untouched and ends up in our bin on a daily basis.

"We are now facilitating the purchase of a €9 meal that will effectively be suspended and in turn be donated to Temple Street Foundation | Children's Charity Ireland.

"All funds raised will be donated on January 4th 2021. We hope this small gesture will make a real difference in the lives of our little patients and their families."

And Oscars Cafe Bar have also joined in on the campaign with their proceeds going towards helping the homeless.

They said: "Starting this weekend, we will be offering the facility to purchase a meal that will effectively be suspended.

"We will in turn donate the cost of production to local homeless charities. A receipt will be provided as proof of purchase.

"We are horrified by the amount of perfectly good food remaining untouched and ending up in the bin just so our customers can enjoy a few drinks in line with current guidelines.

They added: "Hopefully something good can come out of this small gesture."

Drinking rules in pubs and restaurants during Level 3 restrictions:

How long can you stay for?

The 1 hour 45 minute limit will still apply too.

But if you're more than 2m apart from the next table you can stay for longer.

It'll be max of six at a table and there's no limit on the amount households like there was last time.

Wet pubs shut except for takeaways

Wet pubs are closed except for takeaways.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin said: "Unfortunately, nothing in the research available to government supports any further reopening of so-called 'wet pubs' at this stage.

"I know how deeply frustrating this will be for business owners in this sector.

"I fully accept their goodwill about respecting guidelines, but the reality is that reopening indoor hospitality carries risks and there is only so far we can safely go.

"I want to reassure them that additional supports, over and above what is currently in place, will be made available to owners to help them into the new year and prepare for their eventual reopening."

The kitchen rule

Food now has to be made on-site.

Many pubs around Ireland had previously teamed up with local restaurants while others had been preparing meals elsewhere and bringing them in.

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