DENVER (KDVR) — Restaurants around Douglas County are beginning to reopen for indoor dining. So far, more than 90 restaurants are now approved through the county certification program.
One of the restaurants on the short list found a way to make things work ahead of schedule. COVID-19 has forced business owners to find creative solutions.
Business is up and running at West Main in Taproom and Grill in Parker but things were not always this way for the restaurant that opened in February.
“It was sad for everybody, people losing their jobs, not knowing what was in front of them, how long this thing would last, you know you felt bad for the owner, who poured her heart and soul into this place. And weeks later to just close the doors, it was awful,” said service manager Michael Strauss.
The workers and customers are back after management decided to try out an idea, allowing them to seat customers outdoors and remain in Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Level Red guidelines.
“A guest actually gave her the idea of the ice fishing tents and literally that day, she was on Amazon. She bought 34, 35 tents and we put them up. They got here at 11 am, we had about five or six up at noon and they were all full about 15 minutes later,” Strauss said.
The tents were such a hit, the owner not only brought back more than 50 furloughed staff members, they offered new opportunities to 20 others in the community too.
“It’s definitely a different world and it’s difficult getting in and out of the tents with tons of plates in your hands and things like that but the whole morale here is fantastic,” Savannah Boldy, newly hired server said.
Though Douglas County has approved West Main to open their doors again for indoor seating, management said they may keep the tent set up for the long run. They plan to reopen for indoor dining at 25% capacity on Jan. 4.