Zig-zagging barriers made from PVC pipes and plastic sheets were erected for diners craving Japanese-style hot pot at a Bangkok restaurant which reopened for the first time in weeks.
After word came down that restaurants could reopen on the condition they enforce social distancing, restaurant chain Penguin Eat Shabu on Monday reopened its Ari and Ratchapruek branches with makeshift barriers sequestering each table for two people to share a hot pot meal.
The diner containment units cost only about THB300 each, according to chain owner Tanapan Wongchinsri. The restaurants at Ari and Ratchapruek are open for reservations only.
Tanapan said the restaurant chain closed its first branch back in February due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and by March had to lay off employees and impose pay cuts. Monday marked the first time any of its six Bangkok stores had opened in over a month.
Since the outbreak began, Thailand has reported 2,987 confirmed infections and 54 fatalities. There are 2,740 patients who have been discharged from hospitals.
