FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Vico family has been committed to serving Italian dishes at their Cafe Vico Ristorante in Fort Lauderdale for more than two decades. Some of their customers are like family, so Marco Vico said he is setting up a safe space during the coronavirus pandemic.
On Friday, Vico said that when he heard they were going to be allowed to reopen it was one of the happiest days of his life. His loyal clientele has been ordering take out and delivery, but he is looking forward to welcoming them back to his second home at 1125 N Federal Hwy.
“We are sanitizing the entire restaurant,” Vico said. “The extra tables we took out. We set up the outside seating. Each table is 6 feet apart.”
Vico said he has fallen behind on his bills. His employees also need to get back to work. He is among the many restaurateurs in Miami-Dade and Broward counties who are preparing to reopen on Monday, a week after restaurants in Palm Beach County reopened to small crowds.
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Gov. Ron DeSantis allowed restaurants in both counties to open at 100% capacity with 50% indoors and 50% outdoors, as long as every table is 6 feet apart. The guidelines, he said, are meant to help get people back to work while slowing down the spread of the coronavirus disease.
“A lot of that is based on the spacing of the tables or if you have some type of partition,” DeSantis said.
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Vico said the restaurant’s employees will be wearing face masks and both customers and employees will have access to sanitizer throughout the 7,000-square-foot restaurant. He is also getting ready to install plexiglass partitions in some areas.
“We have been here for 23 years and our goal is to be here another 23,” Vico said.
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