Hampstead’s neighbouring creperies are able to reopen after Camden Council revoked their closure orders.
The creperies in Perrin’s Lane were given temporary weekly licences to reopen by the town hall on Friday (February 19) after they were ordered to close a month ago, having been deemed a “significant risk” of transmitting Covid.
The creperie backed by the King William IV pub reopened on Saturday (February 20) as visiting council officers found no concerns over large queues or a lack of social distancing – which is what prompted the original closures. La Crêperie de Hampstead was hoping to open on Wednesday.
King William IV landlord Jimmy McGrath told the Ham&High: “We're very, very pleased.
“We did everything the council asked us to do including marshals and markings. They came round and inspected and were very pleased with what we've done.”
Jimmy said the reopening of the creperie was a big relief amid his pub’s continued closure from Covid restrictions.
He continued: “There’s absolutely nothing people can complain about now because people are social distancing and we're doing everything absolutely right.
“We’ve got marshals in the street, and markings on the walls and windows. It's a bit over the top if anything, but that’s probably a good thing.”
Edward de Mesquita, owner of La Crêperie de Hampstead, said his business was planning to install new measures by the weekend to “speed things up”.
These measures include payment on credit card, rather than cash only, and order numbers being displayed on a screen to avoid people “bunching up at the front”. Customers will also be handed menus while standing in the queue.
“We’re trying to keep a healthy flow without a crowd, that’s the trick,” Edward said.
Camden Council said it had continued to work with the creperies during their period of closure.
“A decision was taken to revoke the closure notices as both businesses have developed revised operating models which should reduce the number of people congregating in the area and therefore reduce the risks to public safety,” a spokesperson said.
“We will continue to work with both businesses over the coming weeks to ensure that the revised operating procedures are still being followed.”
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