A recent string of potential exposures of Covid has forced some Toronto restaurants to close up indefinitely. As concerns over the Omicron variant continue to rise amongst the public, some restaurants have already begun to take matters into their own hands to prevent an outbreak.
Victoria Bazan, a Toronto-based lawyer and owner of beloved seafood oasis Honest Weight, made the difficult decision to close up their indoor dining earlier this week––a choice that was made to prevent any possible exposures during the holidays to the team.
“I don’t know how serious Omicron is, how fast it’s spreading or whether it leads to severe illness. What I do know is that if any of my staff were to test positive as of today, they would have to isolate from their families for the holidays,” says Bazan.
“It could mean that our Chef would have to isolate from his one-year-old daughter on Christmas. That’s the chance I am not willing to take.”
For some, this may have looked like a premature decision, seeing as there had been no push from the provincial government for restaurants to change any of their operations, as of then. As Covid cases continued to climb and with the province making some changes to restrictions throughout the week, their decision may have been right on time.
This week alone, several establishments across the city have had to immediately close up shop due to Covid cases within their team or exposures in the space, including Fat Pasha, Bar Pompette, Pizzeria Libretto on Ossington, Mother Cocktail Bar, ONE Restaurant and Track and Field, the latter of whom recently launched a new speakeasy above their existing bar.
Bazan says that their decision to close indoor dining was based on the safety of her team, and decided to take action before the situation got worse. With Ontario reporting over 3,000 cases on Friday, the situation has, in fact, gotten worse.
“A small business can mobilize and implement measures much faster than any government can, and that’s what we’ve done,” she says. “I am going to do everything I can to make sure that our staff can get through the next couple of weeks safely and that we can re-open for indoor dining as soon as possible.”
On Friday, Doug Ford announced that indoor public settings, including restaurants and bars, would retreat back to 50 per cent capacity, having been allowed to operate at full capacity since Oct. 25. Additionally, restaurants and bars will be asked to close at an earlier time, last calls being before the new 11 p.m. curfew, excluding takeout. Alcohol sales will be restricted after 10 p.m.
When dining at a restaurant, tables will be limited to seating a maximum of 10 people per table, and patrons will be required to stay seated at their table during the duration of their stay.
Food and beverage service will also be halted at some venues, including sporting arenas and concerts. Ford announced on Wednesday that these venues would also have to limit their capacity to 50 per cent.
The Omicron variant, a mutation of Covid that was discovered by scientists in South Africa earlier this month, is said to be highly-transmissible and the most contagious variant of Covid they have seen yet. According to Ford and Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore, there is “no stopping” this variant, only “slowing [the transmission] down.”
Some restaurants have already made moves to prevent a spread by closing their indoor dining entirely, like Honest Weight. Today, The Local in Roncesvalles announced they would be stopping their indoor dining service until further notice “due to the rising case numbers and uncertainty surrounding Omicron,” they wrote on Instagram.
