DES MOINES, Iowa — Walking into Exile Brewing Company in Des Moines is a little different these days. Before you go in, customers and employees have to get their temperature checked.
"We've seen a lot of restaurants and bars that have to close up after being open and we feel that if we're able to mitigate that a little bit and make sure that people are under that parameter of 100.4 that we'll be able to continue and keep this COVID out of the restaurant as well as we can," Exile General Manager Tony Welch said.
The new protocols at Exile are in place to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
Exile also is requiring employees to wear face coverings, tables are spread out to allow for social distancing and patrons can either scan a QR code on their table to see a menu or they are given single-use menus.
"We want to keep our employees safe," Welch said. "We want to keep our customers coming back and feel like this is a safe option when going out to eat."
Gov. Kim Reynolds said Tuesday everything is on the table when it comes to potential COVID-19 outbreaks.
"When we're doing the contact tracing, if we're seeing a lot of the increase due to bars, young people attending bars in the evenings, then maybe we need to take a look at the hours or maybe we need to take a look at rolling back some of the mitigation efforts on bars," Reynolds said during her weekly press briefing Tuesday. "There's a whole host of things that we can do to really help provide the information to Iowans so that we can continue to move forward, continue to open up and continue to recover and help Iowans get back to the new normal."
Staying safe while out to eat
If you plan to venture out there or somewhere else around Iowa, there are a few steps you can take to protect yourself.
First, think about where you sit.
"It's really good to be outside because that outdoor ventilation is great," said Nola Aigner Davis, public information officer at the Polk County Health Department. "In restaurants and bars, you need to be at least six feet away. That means if you're at a bar, you want to be six feet away from the next bar stool. If you're at a table, you want to be six feet away from everyone else."
Wear a mask if you can.
"We know you can't wear a mask when you're eating or drinking, but every other time you should be wearing that mask," Aigner Davis said.
Pay attention to the time you're going.
"Don't go during peak dinner hours or peak lunch hours," Aigner Davis said. "Maybe go a little earlier, maybe go a little later so it's not so crowded."
And before going out, Aigner Davis said you need to weigh the pros and cons.
"If you're going out to eat out, think about the decisions that you're doing today and how that's going to impact everyone around you," Aigner Davis said. "If you live someone who is elderly, someone who has an underlying condition, think about that because you're also putting their health in jeopardy."
Under the governor's disaster emergency proclamation, restaurant owners have to keep their tables at least six feet apart. The only exception is for seating in booths. If a booth has a high enough barrier, seating can be closer together.