Eat out to help out

[Givemethechocolate]

I heard in the news that this could possibly be coming back. What do people think of this? Do you think it contributed to increased cases of covid?

www.bbc.com/news/business-56060962

I think it’s a good idea to help the pub/restaurants industry they have been hit very hard. I felt safer in a restaurant then I do in a shop. All the restaurants were very covid secure when we visited.

I would be very interested to see if there was figures available that showed how many people caught covid from pubs/restaurants - I could be wrong and figures may already been released on this I will have a little search later.

It definitely contributed to the rise in cases. I didn't take part in it in the summer. It would be fucking bonkers to bring it back.

Madness. Eating out should be outside or at home. Not indoors with little ventilation. Madness.

I'd be happy with it, but the issue is that eating out often goes hand in hand with shopping (cue crowded shops), mingling with others socially, etc., all of which is great but not if done too early as it'll reduce the gains from this (for many, horrendous) lockdown. I haven't seen data on whether EOTHO caused a major uptick in infections in the summer, but I got the sense Christmas shopping being allowed at a time of rising infections was not the smartest idea in the box...

Would be madness.

Madness - went so well last time and didn't cause cases to go up at all! But then BoJo is known to be an idiot

A plan of ‘Eat out of help out’ at the same time as opening all schools with no additional precautions-sounds like a great plan! What could possibly go wrong?

eat out to help out was fucking great for us. we'd order from the local food court & take food back to the car

Jesus wept, have our Gov not learned ANYTHING in this whole shitshow????

@SonnetForSpring

Madness. Eating out should be outside or at home. Not indoors with little ventilation. Madness.

Surely that depends on when they bring it back? Eating out won’t need to be outside forever.

Even as an anti-lockdowner, I think its madness.

Ok figures shown cases last year, it was the schools going back in september than the eat out that caused spikes, but still, I think it's an irresponsible thing to do.

Things should be opened gradually. If you offer people, half price food, everyone's going to flock there.

I think an adapted version. Eat out, out to help out. 50% off meals eaten outside or takeaway.

I think it was a daft idea last summer. They can do various measures in pubs/restaurants but the lack of ventilation in most establishments means that the virus could easily spread across the room or via the air con. Until most people are vaccinated, it'll still contrabute to many more cases.

All the places we went to during Eat Out to Help Out had good ventilation, good spacing, good hygiene and good management. Not a single case of Covid between them for the entire time they were allowed to open, whether EOHO or otherwise. We eat out a lot, so I'm not talking about the one restaurant we dared to go into once.

@SummerHouse that's a good idea. Last summer I felt stupid paying more money to have my food take away than to eat in, just because I wanted my family to feel safer. It should be the other way round.

I'm torn, on one hand I'd love to eat out and support my local independent pub but on the other the scheme definitely contributed to cases increasing (along with everyone back in offices etc)

As a restaurant owner I would not welcome another EOTHO, it was dreadful last time so we didn’t opt in, we remained as takeaway only and got a one star review because we did take it up. It brought every crank out of the woodwork. It was widely hated by the industry.

@Okokokbear

It definitely contributed to the rise in cases. I didn't take part in it in the summer. It would be fucking bonkers to bring it back.

This^

Nor did I.
Apparently it contributed to a 30% rise in Covid cases last time.

They should only offer it to companies who can provide outside dining and conform with any distancing requirement needed. Indoor dining should be off the menu for the time being.

@Okokokbear

It definitely contributed to the rise in cases. I didn't take part in it in the summer. It would be fucking bonkers to bring it back.

Where is your evidence? Link?

The government are not thinking of this, Deliveroo suggested it.

Of course they did

I loved it, ate out every week in the summer, most of the time in a pub garden, I never got Covid, I went into London a few times as well, I hope it comes back

I will be furious, frankly.

It caused a rise in covid cases the first time; any idiot could see that was going to happen.

And we taxpayers get to pay for this nonsense for years to come. So people who could already afford to eat out could do so even more often.

Madness.

I was also never contacted to isolate so i’m guessing very few cases or I was super lucky