Harrogate welcomed back pubs, cafes, and hotels with open arms on Super Saturday. Some even queued up for a slice of normality.

Lockdown has been tough on Harrogate’s hospitality sector so they have been anxiously waiting for the big day to arrive.

All businesses have taken extra precautions to make sure the experience is safe but some went above and beyond to draw people back in.

Caffe Marconi reported a line of customers first thing this morning desperate for their coffee and cake fix. Owner Sara Ferguson told The Stray Ferret:

“Everyone’s just really happy to come back and be able to do something that’s a bit closer to what they did before. It’s not what it was before, it has changed, but it’s still us. It’s still our coffee, it’s still our cake.”

Both Cedar Hotel Harrogate and the Fat Badger pub decided to go all out on their outdoor dining experiences. The hotel set up a tipi experience and the pub set up a beach on its doorstep.

Cedar Court Hotel has put up a tipi.

Wayne Topley, the managing director at Cedar Court Hotels, told The Stray Ferret:

“We have been making sure as a business that the customer has a choice. Do they want to check in on their phone, on a touch screen or face to face? They decide.”

Simon Cotton, the managing director at The Fat Badger, said:

“I was stood up here three weeks ago, the sun was shining. I just saw the space and thought it was great, we just needed to get rid of the cars for this beach.”

He also stressed that the beach is not a play pit for children, just a visual backdrop for people to enjoy.

Harrogate BID has given a Super Saturday boost to its levy payers with a match-funded grant of up to £750.

It means that the business can spend up to £750 on signage, barriers, and screens or any other equipment and get a matched contribution towards the cost.

Read more:

• What to expect as pubs and restaurants reopen
• A number of pubs across the district will not be opening this weekend 

All levy-paying businesses within the Harrogate BID area are eligible to receive the grant. But it does not include PPE equipment or employee costs.

Harrogate BID Interim Manager Simon Kent said:

“We are acutely aware that many businesses have had to incur costs to enable them to comply with legislation in order for them to reopen safely. To assist with this financial burden, we have set aside £20,000 to provide match-funding.”

The BID gets its funds from levy payers in the town. This will mean that levy payers will get some of that cash back to support their specific needs to reopen.

Last month, Harrogate BID produced packs of social distancing floor stickers and window posters for. It also bought outdoor tables and chairs for pubs, cafes, bars and restaurants.

Bars and restaurants across the district are in full swing as they prepare for “Super Saturday.”

July 4 is a big day for the hospitality industry. After over 3 months of closure, they now have the green light to re-open their doors to the public.

The Stray Ferret has been speaking to some bars and restaurants in Harrogate as they prepare for what they say will be a “historic” day.

Manahatta, a buzzy bar and diner in the centre of town. Stephanie Welch who is the General Manager said no matter how much training they did it is still new for everyone:

” We are hoping the track and trace system will make people aware that we can get in contact with them and we do have their details, so hopefully that will make them consider how they are behaving, but once people have had a drink it will be hard… We still want to be that party place and try to maintain the atmosphere we had before, but people just have to follow what we are asking them to do, it’s for everyone’s safety. We will have the same style of music but it will just be quieter and we won’t have a DJ for now.”

Manahatta will be taking all orders from the bar, where there will be a glass screen between the customer and member of staff, they will also be running at a reduced capacity.

Despite a sense of relief after a very worrying few months for the hospitality industry, there appears to be a sense of nervousness across the district as restaurant owners prepare to work in a way they never have before.

Daniele Bovo, who owns Al Bivio, an Italian restaurant in Hornbeam Park told the Stray Ferret that it is almost like “starting from scratch.”

“We’re excited but anxious… We are running at around 50 % capacity so it will be quieter to start with. We are trying to keep away from tables as much as possible, without being impersonal. So we won’t be topping up wine glasses etc… We hope that over time things will start to return to how they used to be.”

Owners should take the contact details of one member of each party. This includes a name and a phone number. Their time of arrival and how long they stay for should also be noted. This should then be kept on file for 21 days.  People can refuse to give information, but owners can choose not to serve them.