Several local restaurants are open again and ready to welcome guests to their tables — at least, to 50 percent of them.

Gov. Eric Holcomb’s Back on Track Indiana plan allows different businesses to open at different stages. Restaurants could open at 50 percent capacity starting May 11.

Whether or not they do, and when, is up to the owners.

The state’s suggested guidelines for restaurants include screening employees for signs of illness; placing hand sanitizer in accessible places for guests; requiring employees to wear masks and wash hands frequently; limiting the number of diners waiting for a table, such as using a reservation system; cleaning high-touch areas like door handles more frequently, and other suggestions.

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Bar areas are to remain closed until June 14 and live music is not permitted yet.

For every business, things look a little bit different.

Bird’s Nest Cafe

When businesses and restaurants were forced to close due to COVID-19, owners and employees found themselves adjusting to the circumstances quickly. Many offered curbside services, delivery or take-out.

“We were so busy when we closed, it just took a second for us to go to nothing,” said Tyra Miller, owner of the Bird’s Nest Cafe. “We wanted to figure out how everyone who works (at the cafe) felt.”

The entire restaurant’s atmosphere is focused on gathering and fostering community, and they weren’t allowed to do that for a time.

Instead of turning to exclusively carry-out, they decided to take the opportunity to work on projects that they hadn’t had the time to get done and to “keep moving.”

The Bird’s Nest reopened on May 11, the first day restaurants were allowed to resume dine-in services at 50 percent capacity. That’s seven tables for the Bird’s Nest. The restaurant also has outdoor seating for those who want to enjoy the fresh air and may not feel comfortable in a small space. Curbside pickup is an option, too.

Despite the restrictions, customers were eager to gather again and have been respectful of social distancing guidelines, Miller said. This means they provide hand sanitizer from Hard Truth Hills and have merchandise set up at every other table in order to ensure distance between visitors.

“All in all, we’re lucky that we have these types of options available to us,” Miller said. “It’s hard on everyone, but it’s given us an opportunity to think about how we do things.”

On May 20, Justin Alford and his daughter Eisley were enjoying lunch on the Bird’s Nest Cafe’s patio. Eating outside was Eisley’s choice.

“We wanted to make a day of it instead of staying at home,” Justin said.

Mark VanDevander sat inside in a booth by himself with a mug. Quarantine restrictions were getting to be depressing, but recently, he’s started to see a positive side, he said. When he heard the Bird’s Nest was reopening, he came out. “I love the environment here,” he said.

Michael Rebman, too, sat at a table by himself. He’d stopped in for coffee before going to get his hair cut. He’d found social distancing “depressing,” and had been to the Bird’s Nest a week before to get a taste of normalcy.

Doug and Becky Bell of Columbus were in town to celebrate their 42nd anniversary at the cafe, their favorite restaurant. “We want to help get things going,” Doug said. “I miss seeing everyone here.” About the restrictions in place, “I don’t mind it — I understand,” he said.

Miller is looking to the future with an open mind.

She’s been working on creating a boxed lunch that customers can pick up and take anywhere.

She also plans to start using local meat vendors. “With everything going on with the meat (shortages), we wanted to keep it local,” she said.

A project that was off in the distance was an online menu, which moved to the forefront of the to-do list. “It’s amazing how something like this can kick you into gears,” Miller said.

In some ways, it feels like they’re completely starting over, she said. Financially, the restaurant is at about a third of where it would normally be at this time. The business did receive Paycheck Protection Program aid, which helped, and everyone is back to work, cleaning and maintaining the business in a sort of new way, Miller said.

“When this all began, it felt like you needed to scramble around and stop the bleeding,” she said. But to her, it felt more like quicksand. “We needed to wait for help. It did come, and we’re really grateful for that.

“We’re going to get back to something that resembles (the past) but hopefully it will be better,” she said.

Taking time to close forced her to answer the question: “Do we love this place?”

“It’s always good to have a pause like that. It’s pretty amazing,” she said. “It’s been hard for us to slow down, but really great, in a way.”

Big Woods

You may have seen a bright green food truck parked in Brown County IGA’s parking lot the past few months, often surrounded by people waiting for pulled pork nachos and growlers.

This was one of the ways Big Woods restaurants adjusted to new rules during the pandemic.

Four of the six Big Woods Indiana restaurants reopened to in-person dining on May 11, including two in Nashville, Big Woods Pizza and Big Woods Hard Truth Hills.

Co-founder Jeff McCabe said the owners asked themselves what 50 percent actually meant and how they could be creative for their customers’ sake.

“We went over space of what we weren’t using,” he said. They decided to also utilize the large basement space at Hard Truth Hills which had been reserved for large gatherings. Counting that in as usable space, “I don’t feel like we’ve lost too much seating,” he said.

They’ve been in close contact with the governor’s team to ensure they’re doing the right things in preparing their employees and customers for an enjoyable and safe dining experience, McCabe said.

Employees were hired back in groups and then trained in smaller groups. “There’s a new set of rules,” he said.

Employees’ temperatures are taken when they come in to work. Kitchen workers wear masks and gloves, changing them as frequently as necessary and cleaning surfaces when they’re touched. The restaurants have established traffic patterns that are “one way” so customers and employees aren’t passing each other too closely.

“I think that’s the big thing,” McCabe said, “giving the customers and employees confidence in what we’re doing. We’re trying to be really, really clear.”

“There’s lots of chatter on social media,” he said, people saying they need to “get out there.”

“It’s all really positive. Most people, you know, they understand why guidelines are in place. We’re off to a great start.”

Financially, the temporary closures have cost the restaurants’ parent company about 85 to 90 percent of its revenue, McCabe said. The company also operates Hard Truth distillery and the Quaff ON! production brewery. The brewery and distillery have done well despite the restaurant closures, McCabe said.

“As long as people still keep coming, we’ll be fine,” he said. “It’s all about getting the economy open and that people can feel confident going out safely.”

Another potential concern for restaurants nationwide is meat shortages. McCabe said they haven’t had to adjust menus yet since they work with suppliers to make sure they have extra stock in the freezer.

While restaurants were closed, the Bloomington Big Woods restaurant was redone and the touring and tasting area at Hard Truth Hills was given a whole new look. “We’ve got all the restaurants in tip-top shape,” McCabe said.

The Big Woods Original restaurant on Molly’s Lane in Nashville was set to reopen in late March, but that date was pushed to June 22. The space has been remodeled and will reopen with a completely new menu, McCabe said.

Ultimately, the owners have been encouraged by the way things are going, McCabe said. “Everybody has been great.”

Hobnob Corner

An establishment that has quite literally been a cornerstone in Nashville has been rocked by the pandemic.

Hobnob Corner Restaurant reopened to in-person dining on May 22. The day before, owner Warren Cole said that they were doing what they could in order to adjust to whatever the new normal was going to be.

“Part of it’s trying to reach out to staff, spacing tables out, using sanitizer, masks, that kind of thing, in order to be safe,” he said.

The restaurant did offer carry-out throughout the pandemic restrictions, but business was 5 to 10 percent of what it normally is this time of year. “It was better than doing nothing,” Cole said about carry-out. “We had nice support from customers that have been with us for a long time.”

Cole said they have less than half the staff right now that they did have. “With half capacity, you cannot physically do that. But that will change,” he said.

The day before dining-in reopening, Cole said that he’d had a lot of calls and believed they’d be fairly busy.

“It’ll be challenging,” he said, when asked about making financial marks.

He also believes that longtime customers are excited to get back to the restaurant.

“This town depends on people coming in from the outside,” he said. “It’ll get better as time goes on, I’m sure.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to recommend wearing masks when in public, as well as maintaining a social distance of 6 feet from people you don’t live with.

The state recommends that groups seated together in restaurants be limited to six people or less.

Restaurants also are encouraged to consider using a reservation and/or call-ahead process to ensure that capacity and distancing requirements are not exceeded.

For more information on guidelines for restaurant employers and customers, visit backontrack.in.gov/industryguidelines.htm.

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