JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — “I thought I had given it enough time.”
That’s one woman’s uncertainty. Only giving her first name, Bobbie, she told First Coast News on Tuesday that she’s worried after learning that the Mellow Mushroom pizza restaurant on Third Street in Jacksonville Beach had closed for sanitization. Bobbie, 72 and suffering asthma, took her teenage granddaughter to the restaurant Saturday.
“It looked like they were taking all the steps necessary,” she said, noting that the waitress wore gloves and a mask and that patrons appeared properly distanced. Bobbie said she hasn’t been able to get answers from the restaurant.
“I call, it rings once, and then you get a busy signal," Bobbie. "[I’m] scared because I didn’t know if they were closed because of someone who’d gotten the virus.”
At least two other restaurants in the area – TacoLu on Beach Boulevard and Catullo’s Italian a few miles away on San Pablo Road – announced Tuesday that they were closing to clean specifically because at least one staff member had tested positive.
“We’ve got about 20 or 30 more that have been tested today,” TacoLu manager Kaitlyn Ash told First Coast News. She said the restaurant closed late in the afternoon immediately after learning of the confirmed case. It happened while other bars and restaurants were in various stages of closure and cleaning, including Cruisers on 23rd Avenue South and the Tavern On First Street, but also while at least one – Lynch’s Irish Pub on First Street – was reopening after a three-day hiatus to sanitize.
Longtime patron Tony DiBiasio said he was aware of recent developments at Lynch’s and nearby establishments, but not worried.
“I know some of it’s going to happen, and things can happen, but I feel confident that these places have taken all the precautions that they can. If you’re careful you’ll be fine.”
Meanwhile, at TacoLu, Ash was being up-front with would-be patrons pulling in to the parking lot.
“We did have one positive result come up today,” she told one potential customer after another, explaining the sudden closure.
At the same time, Ash remained hopeful that one positive case wouldn’t cause a lengthy disruption and that at least the restaurant could resume takeout service soon.
“We’re definitely hoping to start getting some negative [COVID test] results so that we might be able to reopen for the weekend.”
Asked, hypothetically, would it be harder for a restaurant to absorb a six-to-eight week complete closure followed by months back in business, or having to make more frequent adjustments over many months, she concluded “I think being closed for six to eight weeks would be a much bigger bruise than being able to do a little bit of curbside business with staff that has tested negative for coronavirus.”
First Coast News also tried to obtain answers for Bobbie, the woman who ate at Mellow Mushroom on Saturday, but got no answer by phone and found the doors locked when we visited. Bobbie said that if there’s another complete mandated shutdown, she’ll be giving it even more time before eating out again.
“I don’t think I’ll go back as fast,” she said. “I know that the economy has to go on or else we won’t survive. But I also know that human life is precious.”