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Fancy a quick pint after a hard day’s work – or a long day furloughed? Well, hold your horses (and a bottle of hand sanitiser).
Boris Johnson has finally made the announcement at least half the nation was waiting for – that pubs will be allowed to pull socially-distanced pints again from July 4 after a three-month hiatus to tackle the spread of coronavirus.
But thirsty punters hoping for a swifty should expect queues, longer wait times to meet the new health and hygiene guidelines. There will be limits on the number of punters allowed into pubs for starters, The Times has reported.
Tables will be more spaced out, meaning smaller overall capacities and landlords will be implementing extra hygiene and safety measures, too.
Glasses will be collected by bar staff – with bar tops and door handles cleaned at least hourly. Some pubs may introduced perspex protection screens at the tills and between tables, plus hand sanitiser points, gloves, masks, and goggles for staff may all be the new normal. Sounds more like a trip to the supermarket.
Pubs with beer gardens will be among the first to reopen, but what will the future of our boozers look like as we start to come out of our long hibernation?
2m or not 2m?
Amid Tuesday’s easing announcement for the hospitality industry, Boris Johnson announced the two-metre rule will be relaxed to “one-metre plus” – with people advised to take extra precautions such as wearing face coverings.
“We can change the two metre ruling – it prevents all but a fraction of our hospitality industry from operating,” Johnson said. “Where it is possible to keep 2m apart we should, but they should remain at least 1m plus apart.”
Please RSVP
Signing a guest book at a wedding is a traditional thing to do, it might be mandatory at pubs too.
Drinkers at pubs and bars will be required to leave their names and contact details at the door so that customers can be swiftly traced if they contract coronavirus. “By collecting contact details from customers we will work with sectors to make this manageable.”
How pubs will account for drunken sign-ins from “Mickey Mouse” and co has yet to be worked out.
Table service
Say goodbye to hanging around at the bar to be served. Johnson said: “All hospitality will be limited to table service, while customers will have to provide contact details to enable the tracing and isolating of people if there is an outbreak linked to the venue.”
Many pubs like The Dove on Broadway Market in London, which has already been rolling out takeaway pints, have been prepping to introduce table service to welcome customers, show them to their seats and manage queues.
“During the lockdown period, we’ve completely transformed the inside of our pub. We’ve knocked through the bar to open up into the next room to allow more room,” explains owner Elizabeth Grogan.
“We’ve spread out the tables and you won’t be able to order drinks at the bar. You’ll have to order from a member of staff and we’ll bring the drinks to you.”
Phoned-in pints
Cash payments are still be avoided so prepare to use contactless at the bar where possible.
Bigger chains will also be encouraging you to use an app to order and pay. Wetherspoons fans may already be familiar with its table service app. Now, Greene King will be rolling out an Order and Pay app to all its managed pubs, too.
No loo queues
Standing in the long queue for the loos might be a thing of the past. Many pubs will be introducing a one-in-one-out system, alongside extra cleaning procedures.
Across the 1,700 Greene King pubs nationwide there will red and green indicators at the entrances to the toilets so customers can flip the light with their elbow as they enter and exit. There’ll also be additional marshalling to manage queues and ensure customers adhere to social distancing guidelines.
“We know people are eager to return to their local,” says the chain’s chief executive Nick Mackenzie,” who adds that staff and patron safety is the number one priority. ”Of course, customers will notice some differences when they return but it’s important that alongside implementing the changes, we maintain the very essence of the great British pub.”
Playing ketchup
Pubs will provide one-time use menus that customers can take away or pop in the recycling bin. Wrapped cutlery will be brought to customers, rather than left on tables and condiments will come in individually wrapped disposable sachets or in fresh ramekins rather than reusable containers.