Living in Covid times no 3 - eating out

Paddington

Member
Location
Soggy Shropshire
We booked a meal for under six of us at a Harvester type pub. Arriving at the pub we donned our Chinese face masks and approached reception. A girl behind the 10mm perspex screen pulled down her visor and asked our names, owing to the masks, visor screen etc this took a couple of attempts, but then we were told to follow her at 2m before washing our hands and then following her again to a table at the farthest end of the building. She showed us the menu which consisted of a QR symbol stuck to the table alongside a "this table is clean" cardboard tower. We were told not to go to the bar but use the app and they were on cloud ! Receiving blank stares I explained we could not do this as I haven't a smartphone because we can't get a mobile signal where we live, could we have a hard copy of a menu ? She wandered off after turning the background music on - the 90's greatest hits -remix at 110dbA so we didn't feel lonely. The menus appeared, could we order a drink ? Yes, no draught beer, can't get deliveries, but foreign lager. Could we have a tab ? Yes, but the card reader didn't work in this part of the restaurant, she would take it to another table and someone would need to use their card after of course putting their face mask on to leave the table. As we had "used" another table this had to be disinfected. The lukewarm meal on cold plates was not worth mention and I couldn't be arsed to queue for the loo maintaining a 2m social distance.
Eating out isn't what it was.
 

Highland Mule

Member
Livestock Farmer
No signal at home would actually be a very strong driver for getting a smartphone. You can have wifi at home and your mobile will still work with wifi calling.

As to the rest, they’re just following government guidelines I suspect (although I thought loud music was verboten).
 

Hindsight

Member
Location
Lincolnshire
No signal at home would actually be a very strong driver for getting a smartphone. You can have wifi at home and your mobile will still work with wifi calling.

As to the rest, they’re just following government guidelines I suspect (although I thought loud music was verboten).

Boris has said yesterday millions will nee to be retrained and employed in new jobs. Paddingtons experience is why the whole hospitality sector (15% of UK economy?) is doomed. They will all have to be trained as solar panel installers!!
 

Hindsight

Member
Location
Lincolnshire
The whole industry is doomed because of one customer who didn’t plan ahead?

My post was intended as being taken as meaning it or ironic - take your pick! No emojis, so no clues to my intended meaning. Yep, a different way of doing things. I will as usual drag myself along with the modern ways.

At moment I am aiming to not go into a pub or eating establishment - so Paddingtons experience reinforces my prejudice! Having said that a group of us (5 - one less than 6) from two households did go to eat in the pub opposite our house last Friday evening. Masks at the bar but other than that it was mainly as before. But it is not part of a corporate chain.

Hey ho. Cheers.
 

Highland Mule

Member
Livestock Farmer
My post was intended as being taken as meaning it or ironic - take your pick! No emojis, so no clues to my intended meaning. Yep, a different way of doing things. I will as usual drag myself along with the modern ways.

At moment I am aiming to not go into a pub or eating establishment - so Paddingtons experience reinforces my prejudice! Having said that a group of us (5 - one less than 6) from two households did go to eat in the pub opposite our house last Friday evening. Masks at the bar but other than that it was mainly as before. But it is not part of a corporate chain.

Hey ho. Cheers.

Not eaten out since around February for me. Not that I did it often before though. Happy to avoid all people in the main, apart from immediate family. For me, this is just like the smoking ban and the policing of drink drivers - the industry will adapt and survive just fine, albeit with a few casualties.
 

Hindsight

Member
Location
Lincolnshire
Not eaten out since around February for me. Not that I did it often before though. Happy to avoid all people in the main, apart from immediate family. For me, this is just like the smoking ban and the policing of drink drivers - the industry will adapt and survive just fine, albeit with a few casualties.

Yep, last Friday was my first visit to the inside of a pub since the Friday before March lockdown. As say the village pub is 20 metres from our front door! We did go into the beer garden on August Bank holiday afternoon when some young local bands were playing, to give support to these young teenage musicians. Like you I am trying to keep social contact to work contacts. Yes, agree businesses will adapt and some will not survive.
 
We booked a meal for under six of us at a Harvester type pub. Arriving at the pub we donned our Chinese face masks and approached reception. A girl behind the 10mm perspex screen pulled down her visor and asked our names, owing to the masks, visor screen etc this took a couple of attempts, but then we were told to follow her at 2m before washing our hands and then following her again to a table at the farthest end of the building. She showed us the menu which consisted of a QR symbol stuck to the table alongside a "this table is clean" cardboard tower. We were told not to go to the bar but use the app and they were on cloud ! Receiving blank stares I explained we could not do this as I haven't a smartphone because we can't get a mobile signal where we live, could we have a hard copy of a menu ? She wandered off after turning the background music on - the 90's greatest hits -remix at 110dbA so we didn't feel lonely. The menus appeared, could we order a drink ? Yes, no draught beer, can't get deliveries, but foreign lager. Could we have a tab ? Yes, but the card reader didn't work in this part of the restaurant, she would take it to another table and someone would need to use their card after of course putting their face mask on to leave the table. As we had "used" another table this had to be disinfected. The lukewarm meal on cold plates was not worth mention and I couldn't be arsed to queue for the loo maintaining a 2m social distance.
Eating out isn't what it was.
If its the same Harvester I last attended ,it was a shyte experience before all this lot kicked off ;)
 

Pasty

Member
Location
Devon
I think the sector is doomed. I'm running out of comedy names to use when I sign in. Done Mike Hunt, Chris Peacock, Hugh Gengine, Danny Kendall, Tucker Jenkins etc.

I loved by job at the pub and was good at it but I wouldn't want to go back now, even if they needed me for the 15 minutes a week they are allowed to open.
 
I think the sector is doomed. I'm running out of comedy names to use when I sign in. Done Mike Hunt, Chris Peacock, Hugh Gengine, Danny Kendall, Tucker Jenkins etc.

I loved by job at the pub and was good at it but I wouldn't want to go back now, even if they needed me for the 15 minutes a week they are allowed to open.
Yes , joking apart ,it does not seem good , and to cap it all the wonderful micro breweries , that had flourished across the country must be feeling the effects of this whole thing !!:oops:
 

Pasty

Member
Location
Devon
Yes , joking apart ,it does not seem good , and to cap it all the wonderful micro breweries , that had flourished across the country must be feeling the effects of this whole thing !!:oops:
Yeah, we've got one in our town who had just expanded and moved to bigger premises. Poor buggers.
 

Highland Mule

Member
Livestock Farmer
I think the sector is doomed. I'm running out of comedy names to use when I sign in. Done Mike Hunt, Chris Peacock, Hugh Gengine, Danny Kendall, Tucker Jenkins etc.

I loved by job at the pub and was good at it but I wouldn't want to go back now, even if they needed me for the 15 minutes a week they are allowed to open.

Why not just use your proper name, and then if there is an outbreak the authorities can do their job and contain it? I'm sure it makes you feel very clever to do what you are doing, but it is quite pathetic, IHMO.
 

Pasty

Member
Location
Devon
Why not just use your proper name, and then if there is an outbreak the authorities can do their job and contain it? I'm sure it makes you feel very clever to do what you are doing, but it is quite pathetic, IHMO.
Because they have already done enough damage to my livelihood plus the wonderful business I worked with and this nonsense over a fake second wave when all the science says it will be mild could be used against me again. Trace and trace app? f**k that. Testing, f**k off. IMHO it is pathetic to want to live in a police state and deny our children their future in a free and democratic country. Don't smile, laugh, dance, sing, have fun, be a student, go out, look at each other, hug, kiss, have sex facing each other and so on. Any sane person would rather be dead which is probably why we have seen a spike in suicides. Meanwhile the bed wetters seem to be lapping it up and I can't really understand why.
 

Highland Mule

Member
Livestock Farmer
Because they have already done enough damage to my livelihood plus the wonderful business I worked with and this nonsense over a fake second wave when all the science says it will be mild could be used against me again. Trace and trace app? fudge that. Testing, fudge off. IMHO it is pathetic to want to live in a police state and deny our children their future in a free and democratic country. Don't smile, laugh, dance, sing, have fun, be a student, go out, look at each other, hug, kiss, have sex facing each other and so on. Any sane person would rather be dead which is probably why we have seen a spike in suicides. Meanwhile the bed wetters seem to be lapping it up and I can't really understand why.

So no proper reason but a hissy fit and make yourself feel clever. How tragic that you get your kicks in this way.

Oh, and 'all the science' doesn't say 'it will be mild'. Most, if not all, Peer Reviewed (i.e. proper science, not just an attention seeker with a doctorate) says it is serious and should be respected.
 

Pasty

Member
Location
Devon
So no proper reason but a hissy fit and make yourself feel clever. How tragic that you get your kicks in this way.

Oh, and 'all the science' doesn't say 'it will be mild'. Most, if not all, Peer Reviewed (i.e. proper science, not just an attention seeker with a doctorate) says it is serious and should be respected.
Utter rubbish. Keep tuning in to Whitty and Vallance and stay scared.
 

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