This fish restaurant is simply open, and it’s legal too!
Last week, we wrote about the Piip-show, the bar that is simply open and where guests come and go. Okay, it was a very special bar. But the fish restaurant in Twente is also simply open, and that may be even more remarkable! Because with the current coronavirus measures, this restaurant really should be closed. What’s up?
Owner Rick de Vries has found a rather creative way to keep his fish restaurant open despite the hospitality industry closure. His business is located close—very close, in fact—to the German border. So Rick put up a large marquee in front of his business, meaning the seating area was no longer in the Netherlands, but in Germany!
Hospitality venues open in Germany
Problem solved, because hospitality venues in Germany are simply open. Coronavirus guidelines apply here too, such as recording visitors’ personal details. And since everything here is closed except hotel restaurants, Dutch people are crossing the border to eat at a restaurant in Germany. Well, what would you do if you lived close to the border? The temptation would surely be great to tuck into a schnitzel with a large glass of beer here? But the reverse is also true, lucky Rick!
Turn around—and come back
Rick told the AD that his German customers like coming to his fish shop to eat fried kibbeling and herring. But after the first week following the lockdown’s introduction on October 14, many Germans turned around again when they were told they could only take dishes away. Rick: “I thought: I have to do something about that. Especially because I depend on the Germans. Around 70 to 80 percent of my customers come from Germany.’’
Completely legal
And since the terrace is at the front of his business, on German territory, the calculation was quickly made. In the marquee, his customers can eat some fish while keeping a safe distance from one another. Very creative and completely legal!
