Super Saturday

So, pubs and restaurants are opening again this Saturday. I've heard quite a few references to the milestone on various media channels this week so far, and can't help feeling that things are getting slightly "hyped"? (BBC R4 was labeling it "Super Saturday" today) It's easy to see how the day might end in tears if this continues and people become irrational like they did over toilet rolls and hand-sanitizer. I can think of a few people who could easily get "over-excited" at the prospect of a session in the pub after an absence of 3 months.

The big question for me is how good will the experience be? Like most Brits I suspect, I can't quite get my head around the concept of booking a table for a pint. It's something that used to annoy the bejesus out of me when I worked in the USA, where table service is quite often the norm. You'd drop into a bar or pub after work gagging for a pint (particularly in the hotter climes) and have to wait 20 minutes to get served and then another 10 for your pint to arrive, when a perfectly serviceable bar sat there right in front of you, empty. 

It's going to be interesting to see how the hospitality industry will handle the changes, most pub-going people I know (especially older blokes) will, I suspect, get somewhat frustrated with measures like table service, especially as the evening progresses! Seems like a perfect scenario for a specialized phone app to me but I guess that's beyond the capability of most small outlets to pull together and not obvious enough for the demographic I have in mind. I think restaurants will be somewhat easier for people to deal with (booking is relatively easy and habitual for most), but, I can't help thinking that the spacing of the tables and inevitable reduction in revenues might cause difficulties for many, time-limits and reduced menus might be the way to go, increase throughput and minimize potential exposure etc.

Will we venture out this weekend? The quick answer is no. I think we'll stick to doing our own thing with friends/Zoom and/or a good movie for a while yet, however, it's a shame not to support local businesses somehow. In the absence of experience we'll probably continue to place the occasional take-away food/cans order and see how things pan out for a few weeks until we get some qualitative feed-back from more devout pilgrims.