Missouri's statewide public health restrictions expired earlier this week, and while some Jefferson City businesses plan to increase their occupancy, others do not anticipate making any changes.
Gov. Mike Parson announced last week that Missouri would shift into the second phase of the Show Me Recovery Plan starting Tuesday, meaning no statewide public health restrictions would be in effect.
BarVino owner Matt Green said the business will be less restrictive on its seating since Parson lifted the statewide restrictions.
To maintain social distancing, Green limited all seating in BarVino, at 204 E. High St. in downtown Jefferson City, to about half capacity. Now that the statewide restrictions have been rescinded, he plans to bring back the missing tables and chairs.
"We're going to increase the number of seats back to closer to what it was before, but nothing else will really change," Green said, adding the bar will still try to limit physical contact with customers and employees.
Green said he doesn't anticipate serving food again until Aug. 1.
The coronavirus pandemic hit BarVino hard financially. In April, the bar did half as much business as it had in April 2019, its fifth month open, Green said. While revenue in April 2019 was primarily bar business, he added, the revenue last April was from retail sales, which does not have as large of a margin.
The pandemic also eliminated BarVino's monthly wine tastings, its biggest source of revenue, Green said.
"The business has made zero dollars since we opened," he said. "March, April and first two weeks of May were going to be huge for us - we had so much business planned."
Green said he doesn't anticipate filling up the bar now that the state's restrictions are no longer in effect. The business most likely will not be able to recoup the revenue it lost in the spring, he added.
Adding more seating won't negatively affect foot traffic, Green said, but "a lot of people aren't going to come out for a long time."
There is one positive that came out of the coronavirus pandemic, though, Green said. His long-term goal was to grow BarVino's inventory so it could become a wine retailer, and the pandemic forced him to do just that.
Similar to BarVino, Jefferson City's new Texas Roadhouse restaurant will work toward operating at 100 percent capacity now the statewide restrictions have lifted, spokesman Travis Doster said. Since reopening, Texas Roadhouse, at 3104 S. Ten Mile Drive, has been operating at 75 percent capacity, he added.
The restaurant plans to maintain its own health protocols, such as requiring employees to have their temperature taken and wear masks and gloves. Texas Roadhouse will continue its sanitation efforts and install partitions around the booths, Doster said.
To ensure customers don't congregate in the waiting area, Doster said, the restaurant will continue its text-to-dine program. When customers go to Texas Roadhouse, they check in and can wait in their vehicles until an employee sends a text message that their tables are ready.
Since the restaurant reopened, Doster said, the community's reception has been "fantastic."
"I think people are ready to dine out," he said. "There was some kind of demand, and I think people were ready to be out in a safe manner. People are ready for the steaks and rolls."
Even though Texas Roadhouse will continue to serve customers, Doster encourages customers to remain cognizant of any potential COVID-19 symptoms and practice good hygiene.
"It's not a food issue; it's a community issue," he said. "If you're sick, don't go out, and we can all work together on this."
Despite Parson rescinding the statewide restrictions, Downtown Book and Toy, at 125 E. High St., will retain its current store policies - maintaining clear guards at the cash register and requiring employees to wear masks, said Manager CC McClure. Employees will also continue encouraging customers to remain 6 feet apart in the store.
The store initially reduced its hours to limit physical contact, but Downtown Book and Toy is gradually increasing its hours back to normal, McClure added.
"We think we're going to keep with what we're doing," McClure said. "We're pretty flexible, but at the same time we want to be as safe as we can and keep all of our employees and customers safe as well."
The store has gradually increased its foot traffic since reopening May 4.
"We've been a lot busier than we thought we would be on May 4, and we've had a few slow days, but for the most part, it's really starting to come back to levels from last year," McClure said.
At Chick-fil-A, 3407 Missouri Blvd., employees will continue sanitation efforts and limit contact with customers, according to an emailed statement from the Chick-fil-A public relations office.
"As all Chick-fil-A restaurants are locally owned and operated, services will expand restaurant-by-restaurant on different timelines but with safe service as their first priority," the statement reads. "As states ease restrictions, Chick-fil-A restaurants may take additional time to review operations and ensure the necessary precautions are in place to protect our guests and team members."