Bars have been open at 50% capacity for week; how have they been doing?

Bars in Florida were allowed to reopen at 50% capacity on Sept. 14 after being shut down for more than three months.

Restaurants got back into business for a longer period of time than bars but both say this weekend has definitely seen business pick up.

Patrons are saying they feel a lot more comfortable seeing that businesses are more prepared now than they were at the beginning of the pandemic. Others say they just missed being able to go out and support their favorite businesses.

“Business was crazy! We had a lot of increase in sales. A lot of people are out on the island,” said Andrew Wiersma, the bar manager for Nervous Nellie’s.

Nervous Nellie’s is excited because their sales this weekend surpassed sales they’ve seen in some of their busiest months, like April.