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Fri 14 May 2021 05.00 EDT
The sight of fresh paint being applied to The Alma in Crystal Palace (established in 1854) gave me reasons to stay positive this spring, because it meant pubs were coming back. Despite everything, the fine British tradition of being busy doing nothing was not to be made obsolete, which was a spark of joy. I missed restaurants, obviously, but while eating out always seemed bound to return in some careful, sterile, heavily planned way, British pubs have never been about carefully laid plans. Their beauty is in their chaos.
A pubâs essential essence is fun: now, tonight or tomorrow â no bookings, no time slots, no table service. Pubs are any given Friday, six deep at the bar, jostling cheek and elbow with strangers. Sticky carpets, table swapping, shouting, with some tuneless singing thrown in for good measure. A rotund pub dog padding about having its ears fluffed. No cocktails, although they will do you a Bacardi and coke in a glass with a lipstic
The ELL Guide to Dining and Drinking Outdoors from Monday
We have made it through four months, ladies and gents. And finally, our long lockdown wait is definitively over and from Monday we can eat and drink together in pubs and restaurants.
Pic: Drew Beamer
April 12 is the day when food and our social lives can lawfully coalesce again. But only outdoors of course.
While this is exciting, here are a few safety guidelines in place for the current allowance of terrace and outdoor dining: You can eat and drink together on the same table outside with separate households, but only up to 6 can be together; Customers will have to wear a mask when not seated at a table; and everyone will be required to “check in” using the NHS Covid-19 app individually for monitoring the spread of the virus.