BOISE, Idaho — In June, Central District Health put out a health order closing bars to help control the spread of COVID-19. A majority of those bars have since remained closed.
For business owners, keeping the doors closed has been extremely difficult. Nearly three months later, some bars are now getting creative in an effort to open their doors.
“We opened up as a restaurant," Tyler Armstrong, General Manager od the Mode Lounge in downtown Boise said. "We got the okay on a Monday and were open on Wednesday with our food menu ready to go."
Armstrong says the team at The Mode worked to change their setup from a mix and mingle bar setting, to a seated restaurant experience with several food options.
“Small charcuterie boards, cheese plates, we got a Caprese salad skewer, an olive selection, nuts,” Armstrong said. They’ve also taken on a newer trend in the food industry. “It’s called 'tin fish.' It’s kind of a hit up in Seattle," Armstrong said. "So, it’s canned fish, we are doing like oysters, mussels, and there is tuna."
The decision to make the change had been on the horizon for The Mode for some time.
“It was after the second shutdown we decided we had to do something to stay open. We are a small business and we wanted to make sure that we could stay afloat through all of this,” Armstrong said.
Bars and lounges cannot just call themselves a restaurant and reopen. Per health guidelines, they had to work with the very agency that closed them as a part of the health order.
Tyler Jordan, an environmental health specialist with Central District Health, has worked with a few bars as they applied to get a food establishment license so they could reopen.
“So really anyone can apply for a food establishment permit. Basically, it’s the same process that a restaurant would have,” Jordan said. “So we sit down, and we go over operationally how they are going to produce the food safely and then go over all the requirements that are needed for them to attain a food permit.”
Jordan said bars are not just given a quick pass to serve food. They must close their bar tops and operate as a food establishment, following guidelines used by Central District Health set for all restaurants.
“The first thing we're going to really look at is hand sinks, where they are located, where are they producing the food. We are going to look at do they have adequate refrigeration or if they are going to be holding food hot, do they have adequate hot holding facilities, as well as places where they can wash all their dishes, whether it be a dishwasher or if they will manually wash their dishes,” Jordan said.
And like all restaurants that have had to adjust their business to adhere to COVID-19 protocols, The Mode will look different than before, with seating more spread out.
“We want to make sure operationally that they have a plan, just like when restaurants were opening back up, they had to submit everything to us," Jordan said. "So that is something we look at, make sure operationally that they have a plan for COVID-19 use, just like a restaurant would."
“It was a small space, right now it feels really large because we have this extended patio. Our patio, I believe, is almost 1,100 square feet, so we’ve been able to stretch out our space a lot outside. Inside we removed some tables to open it up,” Armstrong said.
The reception from guests, so far, has been great.
“The food speaks for itself. It’s good, perfect small plates. Something to snack on and keep you around while you are having a great drink while you’re at it,” Armstrong added.
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