Restaurant Openings

Restaurants reopening across Hamilton County and in Chattanooga.

The weekend hamilton county mayor jim coppinger announced that all hamilton county restaurants can begin the reopening process .

This now includes restaurants in chattanooga.

News 12 joeli poole spoke with restaurant owners about what customers can expect to see in these reopenings.

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Even though today is the first day restaurants in hamilton county and chattanooga are allowed to reopen their dining areas, they are expected to follow the guidelines for social distancing by opening at 50% capacity.

This forces owners to rethink how they do business.

The purple daisy picnic cafe opened their dining room as soon as they got the okay but, owner of the restaurant, tony davis says they are taking things at a very slow pace.

Tony davis / owner of the purple daisy picnic cafe " we are just trying to get back to it.

I know it is going to be slow and we want to take it slow.

We don't want to pile people in here and put people in jeopardy of getting the virus.

We want to be safe.

We will gradually go day by day and see how it goes.

If we start getting more breakouts in the area, we will shut the dining room right back down."

Owner tony davis says they are following every possible precaution.

The tables are separated by 6 feet; there is a limited amount of chairs at each table; and all employees are expected to wear personal protective equipment.

Joeli poole " although all hamilton county restaurants can open, it doesn't mean they all are.

Some have decided to wait until later in the week before opening their dining room services, while others are sticking with the carryout and curbside pick up."

Owner of tazikis on market street says they are waiting a few days before allowing guests to dine in.

Brad emendorfer / owner of tazikis "our goal is to open as soon as possible without sacrificing our number one priority, which is the safety of our staff and guests.

That creates a lot of procedural changes."

Tazikis officials say they hope to open by the end of the week but for now they will continue to offer curbside and carryout options.

To stay up to date on when your favorite restaurants are opening and the procedures and guidelines they are expecting patrons to follow, go to wdef dot com.

In chattanooga, joeli poole, news 12 now.

Chattanooga mayor