BOSTON, MA – MAY 19: Seats on the table in the sitting area of Modern Pastry Shop on Hanover Street in the North End in Boston on May 19, 2020. Some North End restaurant owners are thinking about suing the Governor for the right to reopen for seating dine-in patrons. (Photo by John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Jose Duarte, the chef owner of Boston restaurant Taranta, just couldn't see the logic in the new restrictions announced by Gov. Charlie Baker on Monday. Among other things, the new executive order mandates that restaurants must stop seating diners at 9:30 p.m., starting this weekend.
"What difference does it make between the hours of 9:30 and 11 p.m.? Does COVID turn on between those hours?" said Duarte, who was forced to close Taranta this past summer after 20 years. His North End restaurant struggled through the closures last spring, but he hopes to reopen in a year or so.
Duarte said his industry has already struggled, spending thousands of dollars to make their businesses safe in anticipation of cold winter weather, only to be forced to close business early, despite data that shows how that will help.
