Bookings trickling in for restaurants for the week ahead
With the resumption of dining in for up to two people a table yesterday, restaurants are slowly filling up as bookings trickle in for the week ahead.
One-Michelin-starred Restaurant Labyrinth in Esplanade Mall, which reopens today after closing for a month, initially had 30 per cent of its reservations cancelled or postponed when the new restrictions were announced last Friday.
The modern-Singaporean restaurant's chef-owner Han Liguang said: "Reservations did not flood in like last year. It was a slow and steady climb, but we are close to recovering the lost reservations."
The restaurant, which can seat 26 diners, is almost full for this week.
Over at contemporary Indian restaurant Adda in Beach Road, bookings have also been slow to come in, but its chef Manjunath Mural expects more to stream in for the weekend.
He said customers remain cautious about dining in - a sentiment echoed by other food and beverage (F&B) operators, who highlight that response has been lukewarm and unlike post-circuit breaker last year, when eateries saw a surge in reservations for dining in.
While many F&B players remain focused on deliveries and takeaway orders, they also have to juggle cancellations and postponements of bookings, as well as amending bigger group bookings.
Others are taking additional steps. All three restaurants under The Cicheti Group - Bar Cicheti in Jiak Chuan Road, Caffe Cicheti in Beach Road and Cicheti in Kandahar Street - will seat larger groups from the same household farther away from one another.
The group's managing partner Ronald Kamiyama, 40, said: "As much as we would love to seat family members near each other, past experiences have shown us that people will still mingle.
"Due to this, we are unable to take any risks. This is to ensure the safety of everyone around."
At Spanish restaurant Pura Brasa in Tanjong Pagar, more of its "safe-distancing" bears have been added to occupy empty tables and chairs, and ensure that diners adhere to guidelines.
The restaurant, along with others such as steakhouse Black Marble Singapore in Holland Village and Japanese restaurant Senshi Sushi & Grill in Outram Park, are about half-full for the week.
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