As bars and restaurants are told to stop selling alcohol indoors and close at 6pm, some businesses have opted to temporarily close in a bid to survive.
Numerous bars and restaurants across the region are opting to shut down on a temporary basis as a result of the new restrictions on the hospitality industry announced by the Scottish Government yesterday.
Unable to serve food inside their venues after 6pm and with no alcohol sales allowed inside for the next 16 days come Friday 6pm, many are now looking to close their doors as the only option to keep staff in a job and their business afloat.
Restaurants including Perth’s Dewberry Wine Bar and Dundee’s Clarks on Lindsay Street have already permanently closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, and now The Cellar, Little’s and Mas Dundee are among several to have shut their doors on a temporary basis to safeguard their businesses.
There is also a likelihood that others will follow suit in the coming days.
Marc Crothall, chief executive of the Scottish Tourism Alliance was disappointed to see even tougher restrictions being brought in, pointing to the significant investment in venues across the country to make them as Covid-19 safe as possible.
He added: “We are acutely aware of the delicate balance between protecting public health and the economy; the reality is however that many businesses will not be able to trade at a level over the next few weeks which would sustain them through the next couple of months and may not be economically viable beyond this year.
"The details of the new restrictions as announced by the First Minister this afternoon which will come into force in just two days’ time are nothing short of devastating for the majority of those operating in our hospitality industry." – @MCrothall https://t.co/rDgtWQTX0A
— ST Alliance (@st_alliance) October 7, 2020
“Whilst many people will be relieved that they can get away on a holiday over the half-term break, businesses have already reported they are taking cancellation calls and expect to see more over the coming days, impacting all areas of the sector, including the supply chain.
“The announcement of funding support from the Scottish Government of £40 million is welcome and will hopefully go some way to meeting the loss of revenue and support the fixed costs being incurred during this period of restrictions.
“We welcome the opportunity to engage in further discussions to determine how the funding package will be best apportioned but it remains the case that the amount of support will not be sufficient to protect businesses from being forced into potential full time closure with job losses incurred.
“What is essential is the measurement of the impacts of these restrictions over the course of their enforcement, balanced against the forecasts our members have shared with us over the last few days and we look forward to the invited dialogue as intimated by the First Minister.”
Please note all bars listed below were those that had announced their closure at time of writing.
The current list of restaurants and bars to have closed permanently in Courier Country are:
- Dewberry Cafe and Wine Bar, Perth
- Clark’s On Lindsay Street
The current list of restaurants and bars to have closed temporarily are:
- Mas, Dundee
- Market, Dundee
- Number 57, Dundee
- The Cellar, Anstruther
- The Ship Tavern, Anstruther
- Perth Bothy
- The Vault, Monifieth
- Seafood Ristorante, Fife
- St Clair Tavern, Kirkcaldy
- Little’s Restaurant, Blairgowrie
- The Vic, St Andrews
- Novar Bar, Kirkcaldy
- The Wine Press, Dundee
Dundee
Mas
“We have made the very difficult decision to close after service tomorrow (Thursday) at 10pm, until Monday the 26th of October.”
Market Dundee
“The new Scottish Government restrictions make it impossible for us to operate our business, a pub unable to sell alcohol is like a restaurant unable to sell food. It just doesn’t work.”
Number 57
“We have decided to close until Friday 30th Oct… we have decided it’s best to let this time pass and take stock of where we go from here. We hope to see you back again at the end of the month.”
Clarks on Lindsay Street (permanently closed)
“The last 6 months of closure have been difficult and costly and we tried to remain hopeful that we could get back to something close to normal trading sooner rather than later. Lately though, it seemed that the tunnel was getting longer and the light at the end of it getting dimmer.”
The Wine Press
“You have us for this whole weekend then from Monday 12th we will close until the government announce that our lovely wine can be drunk indoors.”
Fife
Seafood Ristorante, St Andrews
“With new restrictions announced yesterday, we have sadly made the decision that from Friday evening the Seafood will be closed until the 28th October, providing the new restrictions are no longer in place.
The Cellar, Anstruther
Chef Billy Boyter: “Absolutely gutted… these new restrictions are crippling.”
Absolutely gutted. I don’t see the logic or science behind today’s decision. These new restrictions are crippling. pic.twitter.com/m1xrdjnbll
— Billy Boyter (@billy_boyter) October 7, 2020
St Clair Tavern, Kirkcaldy
“We hope to see you all again real soon providing the restrictions don’t change again.”
https://www.facebook.com/StClairTavern/posts/3678538225497963
The Vic, St Andrews
“We are taking a little time out… but will be back soon!”
Novar Bar, Kirkcaldy
“After yesterday’s announcement, we feel we have no option but to close the Novar from 6pm on Friday 9th October.”
The Ship Tavern, Anstruther
“This has been a very hard decision but in the light of yesterday’s restrictions we do think the best action for the Ship Tavern is to close for the next 16 days…”
Perthshire
Dewberry Cafe and Wine Bar (permanently closed)
“It is with a heavy heart that we have to announce that Dewberry is closing its doors.”
https://www.facebook.com/dewberrycafe/posts/209566770525812
Perth Bothy
“It’s goodbye for now… but we’ll be back soon!”
Little’s Restaurant, Blairgowrie
“Due to recent changes surrounding licensed premises, we have made the decision to close for our annual holiday this year.”
Angus
The Vault, Monifieth
“As of 6pm on Friday 9th October we will be closing for 16 days. It breaks my heart but it will not break my determination to see this through…”
