Berlin (dpa) – Five German states, including the city-state of Berlin, allowed their restaurants to reopen on Friday, but with varying restrictions in place.
Brandenburg, Hesse, Saxony and Thuringia eased their rules along with Berlin, following on from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, North Rhine Westphalia, Lower Saxony, Hamburg and Rhineland-Palatinate.
The rules vary from state to state, with a distancing rule of 1.5 metres between chairs and tables the norm. Hesse imposes a restriction of 5 square metres per patron.
In Brandenburg, patrons will have to disinfect their hands before being seated. Other rules in place include providing contact details to facilitate subsequent tracing in the event an infection with the virus is found.
In several states, the waiters and bar staff will be compelled to wear masks covering the nose and face, whereas in others, this is merely a recommendation. In Saxony, only washable menus are allowed.
In many cases, only two households will be allowed per table.
The remaining states – there are 16 in all – are expected to allow their restaurants to open between Monday and May 25.
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