Take a seat and eat

SANDUSKY — Barb Smetzler's cheesy scrambled egg sandwich topped with crispy bacon on a toasted English muffin never tasted better. Her husband and tablemate, Paul, shared a similar sentiment about his chicken salad sandwich surrounded by those ever-famous, golden brown french fries. "We missed it so much here," said Barb, who then pointed to her server, Lori Rogers. "The food is good, but the girls (waitresses) are even better." For the first time in more than two months, on Thursday, Ohio-based restaurants could reopen their dining rooms and welcome back customers for sit-in service. Gov. Mike DeWine recently relaxed some of his regulations regarding the state's stay-at-home order as it pertains to restaurants. For instance, this past weekend, he allowed establishments to serve people in outdoor environments, like patios and beer gardens. The Smetzlers circled their calendars long ago, eagerly anticipating a lunch date and a reunion, of sorts, at Berardi's Family Kitchen on West Perkins Avenue. "It's been a long time," Barb said. They also noticed some changes, which all in-state restaurants must adhere to in hopes of limiting the spread of COVID-19. For instance, at Berardi's, staff wore face masks, and hostesses sat parties away from one another. "It's definitely been difficult, but we appreciate all the people who have supported us, (during the past two-plus months), with carry-out and our food trucks," Berardi's co-owner Tom Leber said. "We missed our customers and employees, and we're just doing what we can to thrive and not struggle." Down the street, at VFW Post 2529, general manager Anthony Tuttamore spent his downtime remodeling the entire dining room and crafting a new menu, offering fresh food options. His staff also took great strides to keep the facility as germ-free as possible. "We have been preparing our employees about the proper rules and going through all the mandates," Tuttamore said. "We are trying to make sure everything we do is proper and want to provide great service to all of our customers and veterans in a safe way." Chris Biechele, the owner of Cheers Sports Bar & Grill in the Sandusky Mall, took maybe the most extreme measures anywhere around. He installed a massive 3-foot-tall partition around his entire bar, which hugs each edge. A slot beneath the divider, separating customers from staff members, allows patrons to receive a drink or slip a credit card underneath the barrier. "I have an obligation to both the staff and guests to keep them safe, and the partition helps keep everyone at bay while still allowing room to serve the customer," said Biechele, who stressed his staff underwent extensive safety training before reopening. "We did a deep clean during the closedown, down to the point of steam-cleaning the grout tiles and redoing the bathrooms," Biechele said. Shutting down for two-plus months, and then taking extra steps to protect the public comes at a great cost. Biechele bluntly explained. "I'm broke, financially. This has been a tens-of-thousands-of-dollars experience to just keep us floating for two months," Biechele said. "I'm happy we're open, but things are pretty dire for us and everybody in this industry. We're just trying to do what we can and, hopefully, that's enough."