Coronavirus: 60 restaurants in Delhi’s Connaught Place to shut, others report steep drop in footfall

At Connaught Place, which has more than 170 restaurants and bars, at least 60 restaurants will shut operations from Tuesday midnight in the wake of coronavirus outbreak.

At least 60 restaurants, cafés and eateries in Delhi announced a shut down on Tuesday till at least March 31, with effect from midnight, in view of the novel coronavirus pandemic in the city. The move has come after the Delhi government on Monday barring assembly of more than 50 people at a public place at a given time as well as closure of night clubs.

Fewer people seen at Kake da Hotel, a usually bustling establishment, as people keep away as a preventive measure against coronavirus, in the outer circle of Connaught Place, in New Delhi on March 13, 2020. (Sanjeev Verma/HT PHOTO)

According to restaurant owners, business has taken a hit with footfall reducing to less than 70% last weekend onwards. Many outlets had been either closing early or trying different alternatives to implement the order.

At Connaught Place, which has more than 170 restaurants and bars, at least 60 restaurants will shut operations from Tuesday midnight. The decision was taken by the restaurants association in a meeting on Tuesday evening.

“All restaurants have a staff of at least 65-70 each. There is no point in limiting the number of guests or taking a chance. This is why we have decided to shut down. We are not considering our losses at this moment. It is more important to contain the spread of the virus and keep both our guests and staff safe. We had been in touch with the government on what must be the course of action. It was unanimously decided to shut down 50-60 outlets with liquor licences, which draw large crowds. The staff has started cleaning and shutting down from midnight Tuesday. We will review the situation after March 31,” said Dinesh Arora, vice-president, Connaught Place Restaurants Association (CPRA).

Arora said many other outlets in various parts of the city are expected to join the shutdown over this week. The smaller eateries may choose to open, as they have fewer guests and small seating space.

“These are times when we need to think about our staff and patrons more than the business. At midnight today, we are shutting down all our restaurants across the country till March 31. We urge the government to take similar steps before it goes out of hand. We are spreading the message through social media,” said Priyank Sukhija, CEO, First Fiddle, a company, which runs 20 outlets in Delhi, including places such as Tamasha, Warehouse Café, Teddy Boy, Lord of the Drinks and Flying Saucer, among others.

At Khan Market, where at least 33 food and drinks outlets are located, owners said the number of guests has dropped drastically, automatically reducing the gatherings. “Of the 33 restaurants here, only three have the seating capacity of 50 or more, most others have space for 48 people only. Unlike Connaught Place, we have a different and selected clientele. We are not having more than 10-15 guests at a time these days. Still, we are giving them alternate tables and exercising all other precautions,” said Anshu Tandon, president, Khan Market Welfare Association.

While the government and health workers have recommended social distancing to keep the virus at bay, most restaurateurs said they have made the seating arrangement in such a manner that the tables are placed at a distance of at least 3 feet to 1 metre.

In South Delhi’s Hauz Khas Village, another hub of popular restaurants and lounges, the outlets are closing early for lack of patrons. “There is no night club here. We have only around 10-12 outlets working as many were sealed for various reasons. The market had lost its sheen. Now with this outbreak, we are only getting 5-7 guests and that too in long gaps. Most owners here close by 9-9.30 pm, much before the 1 am deadline, said Satinder Singh Sarna, president, Hauz Khas Village Traders Association.