LA restaurants serving up more Covid restrictions

As cases of the Delta variant rise across Los Angeles, an increasing number of restaurants are requiring diners show they have Covid-19 vaccinations or have recently tested negative for the virus.

Owners say they are doing so to prevent an outbreak that would force them to close, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Restaurants across California operated at limited capacity for much of the pandemic and were twice forced to close entirely last year — once at the beginning of the pandemic and again toward the end of 2020 during a second surge in cases.

On June 15, the state allowed restaurants to reopen at full capacity along with most other businesses.

But the rate of new cases and hospitalizations has been steadily rising over the last several weeks. Experts blame that on the more infectious Delta variant.

The latest surge has been another blow to owners still trying to make up for lost business.

L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele in Hollywood is giving rapid Covid-19 tests to diners who can’t prove a negative test in the last 24 hours, and has opened an outdoor lounge for diners.

[LAT] — Dennis Lynch