Chicago Bars, Restaurants Prepare For St. Patrick's Day COVID-19 Restrictions

Click here to view related media.

click to expand

They will not be packed to the brim for celebrations this St. Patrick's Day weekend. This year it is all about social distancing and a maximum of six at a table for an Irish beer that can be enjoyed safely.

Dublin's has a little slice of Dublin in the middle of Chicago's Gold Coast.

They've been celebrating St. Patrick's Day big since the early 90s, but they're gearing up for a very different weekend this year.

"It's usually a mad house," he said. "We're in uncharted waters."

They're happy to welcome their regulars back inside with celebration of a a very different size and style planned.

"I think we are gonna have to turn some people away and that's sad," he said.

Even so, they've been gearing-up for days with hundreds of pounds of corned beef, a meal they serve year round, on deck for the weekend.

They're not the only ones prepping. Business Affairs and Consumer Protection investigators have been making the rounds, reminding bar and restaurant owners of the COVID regulations on top of warnings they already issue ahead of the big weekend.

"Last year we were literally just starting to understand what was happening," said BACP Commissioner Rosa Escareno.

Escareno said they've learned a lot since then, when the notice sent to businesses didn't even mention COVID.

"It was only a few days later that we actually shut down," she said.

They're not taking chances.

"This Saturday and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m., the entire day, we are going to be out there engaging and enforcing," Escareno said. "Hotels, party buses, boats, bars, taverns, restaurants."

At Dublin's they're well aware of those guidelines ready to make their namesake proud in the best and safest way possible.

"I'm totally excited about that," Lakani said.

Bars like Dublin's will still have a list of rules to follow, including the following:

• Capacity Limits: Indoor service for bars, restaurants and events is strictly limited to the lesser of 50% capacity or 50 people per space, and establishments must control lines outside their establishment.
• Everyone must wear a face covering: Face coverings can only be removed while patrons are seated and actively eating or drinking.
• Customers must remain seated: Patrons must be seated whenever eating or drinking or when ordering drinks. Under updated guidelines from the State of Illinois, tables must be spaced so that seated patrons are six feet apart, with no more than six people at a table in Chicago.
• Reduced Hours: Establishments must close for on-site service by 1:00 a.m.

To date, the city has wrapped up more than 8,000 investigations and cited more than 460 businesses for violating COVID-19 regulations. They're hoping, with all of the warnings and reminders issued already, that list doesn't grow this weekend.