Cosy dining out in Spain: everyone in a glass booth
The hospitality industry in our country will remain closed for the time being. After all, a lot still needs to happen before we can dine at our favourite restaurant again. In Spain, they are meanwhile doing everything they can to reopen soon and came up with these glass booths as a solution.
From lockdown to ‘lockup’
Dining out in glass booths: it doesn’t sound very cosy, but it may well be the way in which the Spanish will soon be able to have a ‘normal’ social life again after the weeks-long and strict lockdown. The measures have since been relaxed somewhat, but with this clever invention, people in Spain can hopefully soon enjoy delicious pinchos and sangria together outdoors again. The municipal authorities of Madrid said this week that they were considering reopening outdoor terraces in the hospitality industry, provided that the 1.5-metre distance can be guaranteed.
Eating in a glass booth
The glass booth concept is already being tested in a restaurant in Leganes near Madrid. The creator of the idea, Manual Gil, explains that the Plexiglas-like glass walls between and around the tables should ensure that people can eat and drink with their family and friends without coming into direct contact with one another. The idea of a glass wall in front of your nose and getting your own food from trolleys will take some getting used to, but it’s better than nothing, right?
The hospitality industry in other countries
The reopening of the hospitality industry is also happening differently in every country. In Italy and Austria, for example, restaurants and bars are reopening with the 1.5-metre distancing rule, the mayor of Lithuania has decided to turn the capital into one large terrace (meaning hospitality businesses may now also use public space for their terraces), and in Sweden the hospitality industry is still open. At least, not all of it: businesses that failed to observe the 1.5-metre distance had to close their doors again. Meanwhile, we are anxiously keeping an eye on when we can sit on a terrace here again — and how.
With thanks to: El Comercio
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