[title]
Nearly two months to the day that Florida’s stay-at-home orders forced them to close down, Miami restaurants will be allowed to reopen on Monday. As owners prepare their dining rooms for reopening, they’re also thinking of ways to maximize their spaces for socially distant dining. And for most, that means taking business outside.
Under phase one guidelines, restaurants must not exceed a 50-percent capacity indoors—which, depending on the size of the business—could mean a significant reduction in the number of guests who can dine in. It’s an obstacle that officials are taking seriously as several cities move forward on ordinances that would allow operators to reclaim their sidewalks and, in some cases, take over entire streets.
In Miami Beach, commissioner Michael Góngora is working with the Traffic Alliance Miami—a nonprofit organization aimed at improving mobility throughout the city—to close heavily trafficked streets such as Ocean Drive and Washington Ave to cars in order to increase outdoor restaurant seating. This would allow operators to take over sidewalks and adjacent parking spaces without the need for a special permit. Even expansive venues like Time Out Market Miami would benefit from the increase in square footage, giving customers more than the required six feet to spread out and enjoy their meal safely. A spacious interior and high ceilings notwithstanding, the option to spill out onto the street would nearly double the number of tables the market offered along Drexel Avenue before the shutdown.
Officials in the usually strict city of Coral Gables are also considering allowing restaurant owners to set up tables outside without requiring a permit, at least through the end of the year. Though some businesses would rather get ahead of potential changes than wait for the rules to change and have requested permits early. Starting next week, Caja Caliente’s Mika Léon will be using her parking lot as a pop-up dining room, propping up two oversize tents where customers can relax unencumbered. “It’s going to be like Wynwood’s tropical Caja vibes with music and lots of plants,” says Léon.
Miami’s summer weather may not be conducive to eating outside but giving customers the option might be the thing that gets them back to restaurants faster. For Matt Kusch of Kush Hospitality, open-air spaces are really the only option for dining in—at least for now. “I’m thinking of only doing takeout and opening the restaurants that have outside seating,” he says. “I just think that’s a little less scary and welcoming to people who want to practice social distancing.”
Most popular on Time Out
-10 single ladies get real about dating in Miami during the lockdown
-Miami-Dade libraries are now offering curbside pickup for books and DVDs
-How to tie-dye at home, according to this Miami expert
-Craving something homemade? Check out these underground pop-ups from Miami’s top chefs.
-Fairchild Garden wants to host your virtual wedding