15 RI Restaurants Reopening for Outdoor Dining
GoLocalProv News Team
15 RI Restaurants Reopening for Outdoor Dining

Since Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo announced guidance around how outdoor dining will work, restaurants have been prepping -- and taking to social media to announce their reopening plans.
SLIDES: See 15 RI Restaurants Reopening for Outdoor Dining BELOW
"As we’ve been saying, going to a restaurant is going to look and feel a bit different now," said Raimondo.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST"To give you an idea now, among the new rules everyone will have to follow," she continued.
- Dining will be by reservation only and groups may not exceed 5 people in accordance with social gathering limits.
- Tables must be spaced at least 8-feet apart or separated by barriers, and no more than 20 tables total will be allowed in any outdoor space
- We're going to eliminate shared objects in favor of things like one-time-use paper menus, disposable utensils, and cashless and contactless payment methods.
- All high-traffic areas will have to be frequently cleaned. Tables and chairs will be sanitized in between parties.
"There are more specific rules and regulations we'll ask restaurants to follow, which you can find on reopeningri.com," said Raimondo. "The most important rule, however, is for the diners: stay home if you feel sick. I know that it's hard and that you want to go out, but you have to put the health of your friends, neighbors, and family first."
"We expect this outdoor dining approach to continue for at least a few weeks before we advance to indoor restaurant dining. The soonest we’re likely to authorize indoor dining is June 1. I’m saying this now because we want to encourage restaurants to give outdoor dining a try if they feel they’re ready. We know some restaurants won’t want to reopen with outdoor dining and that’s fine; others don’t have outdoor space and will want to explore the use of their parking lots, nearby parks, sidewalks and even streets for this purpose."
