Garden Route restaurants find innovative ways to keep afloat

Restaurants countrywide are finding it hard to keep their doors open following Level 4 lockdown restrictions.

Some restaurants in the Garden Route region of the Western Cape have found innovative new and also old ways, of keeping their businesses afloat.

While they can only serve takeaways, they’re making sure their customers are being treated to the very best they have to offer.

Some have adopted the old-school roadhouse style of dining out. Your can now dine in your car and still have some of the spoils that you enjoy at a restaurant such as a good good and a friendly waiter.

Gerhard Le Roux from Jou Ma Se Kombuis in Mossel Bay has started serving takeaway breakfast dressed in his pajamas.

There’s a discount for patrons who also come collect their food dressed in their pajamas.

Le Roux says you have to be innovative at this time.

“Because we don’t have sit-downs anymore, we try everything for people to come through. We trying the pajama thing. Next thing we’ll try something else. We just trying to get people here. We know it’s difficult for people to come out during this lockdown. “

Patrons Lourens and Elma Nel complied and collected their food dressed in pajamas.

They say they love the idea and will do their best to support their local businesses.

“We must do everything we can to support our small businesses because they going through a very difficult time. So even if I have to go eat breakfast in pajamas you do it.” 

Delfino’s in Mossel Bay has reserved some bays in their carpark where their customers can park to get the roadhouse experience.

“The roadhouse is something they tried back then way before my time. We try to get customers by doing the roadhouse so they can’t get sick and nobody gets infected by the coronavirus that we dealing with, ” says Delfino’s waiter, Sachin Canham.

Another restaurant in Wilderness near George, Salina’s, is taking advantage of the beach without trying to break any laws.

Since it’s close to the beach, owner Massimo Mariotti has set up some tables on the sand where his customers can enjoy their take-aways.

“We’ve had to think of innovative ways. Today the weather is beautiful so we setting up some tables on the beach so people can come get the take-aways, set up on the beach and hopefully we gonna have a busier day. “

It’s been a tough few weeks for the industry, it could get tougher. The good news, for now, is some financial relief following government’s announcement of an extension of UIF payments to the industry.