SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Breweries like Alaro Craft Brewing in Midtown are a prime example of making things work despite a setback.
They had to shut down their dine-in seating earlier this week according to Governor Gavin Newsom's orders, but as long as they are still serving food with every purchase outside, they can keep their patios open.
"It'll be a new holiday weekend, that's the best way I can put it. Something new, and we're going to start over," said Alexia Bayardo, a manager for Alaro Craft Brewing.
Just days before the long holiday weekend, restaurants, breweries, wineries and more had to close dine-in seating for the second time since March after Sacramento County saw a spike in new coronavirus cases.
"As we approach the Fourth of July, another big holiday, here is another big test for Sacramento, for our state and for our country," Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said. "Let us meet that test by having a different Fourth of July than we've had before."
On top of a statewide mask mandate, county guidelines are still allowing hair salons, gyms and drive-in movie theaters to stay open.
But don't expect to sit down at any indoor bar over the Fourth of July weekend.
"We're getting new news every single day and new guidelines, but we're just making it work as best as we can," Bayardo said.
Alaro was reopened for just under a month.
"To start all over again is very daunting and scary, but we realized that we are allowed to utilize the space that we have," Bayardo said. "We have this brand new beer garden that we really haven't jumped on since COVID-19, and we used that time to really get tables out here, make it nice, make it people friendly."
They're staying open, under the condition that everyone must sit outside and food must be ordered with any beer purchase.
Bar-only establishments that do not serve food are the ones that have closed for the weekend. Ones with food and outdoor seating can remain open for the holiday weekend.
"We just want to see people, we want to see people coming in and enjoying our products so as best as we can to sort of dodge and weave is what we're going to do," she said.
Follow the conversation on Facebook with Lena Howland.
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