Restaurateurs welcome the Chandigarh Administration’s move to allow restaurants to remain open till midnight

Mona

In a push towards normalcy, the Chandigarh Administration lifted night curfew allowing restaurants/bars to remain open with 50 per cent capacity from 8 am to midnight.

The decision is hailed by restaurateurs as a welcome step for the industry that suffered big losses through the two waves of the pandemic. Post months of ‘lockdown’ cooking, eating out has come back in vogue. As the first dose vaccination is almost complete in the city, it has given people the confidence to step out. Better sales for operators, more revenue for the government and better earning for servers is how Manmohan Singh Kohli, CEO and Managing Partner of The Aroma Classic and Aquamarine, interprets the move. “Traders and professionals generally finish work by 9 pm. With the last order at 10 pm, there was hardly any time to unwind. The night slot also translates to better tips for servers. So, all three – operators, government and work force in the hotel industry tend to benefit. It’s surely more value for their time,” he says.

“It’s a welcome step,” says Arvinder Pal Singh, president of the Chandigarh Restaurants and Hotels Association. “The added hour-and-a-half for orders translates to 20 per cent more business,” says Singh.

Vipul Dua, founder and managing director, Peddlers, is looking forward to the weekends. “Restaurants are doing much better business. The rush, however, is only on weekends.”

That the one must maintain 50 per cent seating, Dua has removed some tables in between to comply with the rule. “We also stick to couples and families and no stag entry over the weekend. So, we are able to maintain the Covid protocol,” he says.

“The extended hours would result in more footfall as now working professionals can step out to enjoy some down time,” says Inderjeet Singh Banga, behind restaurants Pirates of Grill and Prankster. While Chandigarh has lifted restriction now, Punjab and Haryana had done away with night restrictions earlier. “We would rather move slow and safe than go full throttle and then end up with another lockdown,” says Arpit Singh, owner, Piccadilia - The Theatre Cafe.

“We stick to 50 per cent seating capacity and social distancing norms. The pandemic is still out there and it’s better to be safe than sorry,” he added.

Priyanka Gupta, director, Hops n Grains and The Great Bear Kitchen and Microbrewery, considers it a big boost to the industry both in terms of sale and in terms of confidence building towards normalcy. “However, we would keep following Covid-appropriate behaviour. It will be hugely positive for our new brewery in Mohali as people in Mohali prefer late night dining,” she says.

Not everyone is that kicked-up with the move but content in being back in business which is gradually coming back to the pre-pandemic times. “Families generally finish meals by 10 pm, those generally drinking finish by 11, so business is going to be more or less the same, which has already picked up,” says Vikas Mahajan , Hotel Shanti Sagar, Mohali.

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