A handful of Greenwood restaurants have reopened their dining rooms to customers now that the state has lifted restrictions limiting them to drive-through and curbside service only.
Other owners, however, are waiting a while.
At the Crystal Grill at noon Thursday, it was definitely not business as usual in the dining areas, although the restaurant’s customers seemed pleased and the masked staff appeared happy.
Customers were spaced in tables that were positioned at least 6 feet apart in a restaurant that traditionally teems with crowds at lunchtime and in the evenings.
In the Crystal’s front room, two tables had customers. In the next room, there was one. In the four ample rooms around the corner, there were customers at five tables.
However, orders for curbside pickup outside the entrance were steady, keeping the staff busy with sacks of food heading out the door. Inside was different.
Nataska Prayer, a waitress at the Crystal Grill, carries one of the restaurant’s famous pies while wearing a mask, as now is required by the state at restaurants that have reopened their dining areas.
“We didn’t have enough business,” said owner Johnny Ballas. “It being the first day, it is hard to judge. We don’t know if the word has gotten out.”
He said that “by 1 o’clock, we had served around 20 meals, total.” But, “that being said, what fuels lunch business for us (on Thursdays) is our traveling sales people” and out-of-towners in Greenwood on business.
Among these were Cleveland residents Blake Ferretti, a property developer, and Wilson Langston, who is in the insurance business. Ferretti in particular is a Crystal Grill fan. He was eating fried scallops, and Langston had the Greek salad. They also had a half dozen tamales as a starter.
Someone called Ferretti’s cellphone, and after he answered, Ferretti said, “Hey, we are at the Crystal Grill for lunch. Want to join us? ... OK, be that way.”
Ballas had rigorously prepared for reopening. It took two days to deep clean and sanitize the restaurant, organize the staff and arrange seating.
He was carefully following state rules that only half of a restaurant’s seating capacity could be put to use.
“I think I had 25 tables available in the whole place,” he said. “Our normal capacity is up to 250 people.”
Among the safety regulations that he said are scrupulously being followed are keeping tables clean from one set of customers to the next. When customers leave a table, everything is removed from it, even condiment bottles. Then it is sanitized. “It’s down to the bare table, and everything that comes to that table is brand new and handled with gloves,” he said.
The Greenwood Convention and Visitors Bureau has been maintaining a list of restaurants and their situations on its website. Danielle Morgan, executive director, said the list is being updated frequently, as much as twice a day. According to the list, No Way Jose, the Park Cafe, Serio’s, The Brick Pit, Turnrow Cafe, What’s Cooking, Webster’s and By the Bridge Bistro were among restaurants either already open Thursday or planning to reopen in a few days.
Mai Little China is not yet among these. Owners Cathy and Matthew Mai said they are anxious to reopen but are just not prepared to do so. On Wednesday, they began curbside service for the first time. The phone’s been ringing steadily with orders, and people have waited in their cars and on the sidewalk to pick them up.
Mai said she and her husband are concerned about the safety of their customers and staff, and they want to be certain they have a full staff on hand before they try to keep customers inside.
Candy Hony, left, and Cynthia Smith work at the Larry’s Fish House food trailer in Greenwood Thursday. Larry Kelly, owner of the restaurant, said it would not yet reopen inside its building in Itta Bena.
Meanwhile, Larry Kelly of Larry’s Fish House in Itta Bena said he’s not going to try to do what the state requires. He’s going to wait and continue with busy sales of fried catfish along West Park Avenue. His food trailer has been parked at Highland Park Shopping Center lately.
His restaurant can seat 200 at a time but it often serves 300 in an evening, and he said he won’t reopen until he can “get a bigger customer base” inside. “I can’t make it on half a crowd,” he explained.
Also, he doesn’t want to turn customers away if the Fish House is too full.
“I am going to stay closed until I can treat my customers like they are supposed to be treated,” Kelly said.
Ballas said, “It is going to be a slow evolution. I don’t think it is going to happen quickly.”
•Contact Susan Montgomery at 581-7241 or smontgomery@gwcommonwealth.com.
