On Monday night, Gov. Jay Inslee released a list of detailed guidelines that restaurants must adopt before resuming dine-in services during “phase two” of Washington’s reopening plan during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As announced previously, dining rooms can reopen at 50 percent capacity in this phase, with no more than five people at a table. But now there are several other strict requirements, including eliminating bar seating, distributing single-use menus, and logging diners’ personal info to facilitate contact tracing, a rigorous method of tracking and monitoring those who may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus.
That last requirement is one that perhaps may generate the most discussion. According to the state’s phase two playbook, restaurants that offer table service must plan to keep a daily log of phone numbers, emails, and arrival times for everybody who comes in to eat. Diners are already used to giving restaurants such details to make a reservation, but Washington’s rules state that all customers must be logged, not just one per party.
It’s also unclear how exactly the information will be handled, distributed, or purged when not needed anymore. But on Tuesday, Inslee held a press conference detailing the state’s robust contact tracing plan, which he said would be key to mitigating the spread of COVID-19 — and addressed some concerns over privacy. He said that Washington would have the legal authority to prevent any data collected from restaurants for being used for purposes other than contact tracing (such as advertisements
“We would monitor it, we would audit it,” Inslee said, adding that he’s still working with leaders in the restaurant industry on coming up with a set of protocols that make sense. “It’s very important for us to maintain privacy in this entire endeavor.”
It won’t take long before these guidelines translate to action. Eight rural counties in Washington have already been approved to enter phase two faster than other parts of the state, and so once restaurants in those counties can provide documentation to the state on compliance for these measures, they should be good to go. Other areas, including Seattle, are likely still a few weeks away, provided that coronavirus cases, transmission, and hospitalizations continue to trend in the right direction.
To date, there have been 7,068 COVID-19 cases in King County, with 506 deaths. Though the disease is spreading much slower than before in the Seattle region, one recent report shows that the rate of transmission is no longer falling, and could in fact be rising again. Local officials warn that cases in western Washington can be expected to plateau or increase, if the trend continues, which makes social distancing crucial. It’s unclear when Seattle restaurants may enter phase two, given this data, but it is unlikely to happen before June at the earliest.
Whenever restaurants do reopen for dine-in services, those who have been following the protocols surrounding COVID-19 may not be completely surprised by the new rules, and Washington isn’t the first to institute logging requirements for restaurants. Maine has its own set of reopening guidelines that asks restaurants to maintain customer records for contact tracing, and cities such as Austin and New Orleans have announced similar plans.
Still, restaurants that don’t have computerized systems may be left scrambling to figure things out in an ad hoc manner. And it’s notable that counter service restaurants with no table service would appear to be exempt to the daily logging rule, according to the regulations.
All this doesn’t even factor in the challenges of adhering to the other safety requirements listed by the state. While some seem to be relatively standard now (such as providing hand sanitizers near each entry), others may take a little more planning. Restaurants will need to space tables six feet away from each other, or have physical barriers separating them, which might be tricky for smaller restaurants in the city. Employers must also provide mask coverings for staff, but with personal protection equipment (PPE) is in short supply, it’s unclear what the costs or logistics of that will be. Meanwhile, the state recommends that customers wear cloth face coverings at restaurants (and in King County, restaurants can turn diners away for not donning them) — but diners don’t need to wear masks while seated at tables.
But the city’s chefs and owners are already a bit wary of reopening under restrictions and conditions, such as 50 percent capacity. Melissa Miranda of the Beacon Hill Filipino restaurant Musang has said she will not reopen for dine-in services right away, but rather continue her newly-launched takeout service. Star chef Shota Nakajima says his Japanese spot Adana said it “is too awkward to try to reopen at 50 percent with the right kind of service expected and not lose money.” And, before the new guidelines were issued, John Sundstrom of the upscale Capitol Hill restaurant Lark had discussed the urgent need for more specific public health direction from officials so that it doesn’t fall just on restaurants to be regulators. “We’re in the hospitality industry,” he said. “If we have to turn people away and refuse service, that goes against what we do.”
Washington’s new guidelines are listed below.
UPDATED: May 12, 2020, 3:00 p.m.: This piece was updated with comments from Gov. Jay Inslee at his press conference on Tuesday, clarifying privacy issues.
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