Local

Orlando restaurants fight to stay open amid rising COVID-19 cases

ORLANDO, Fla. — The area’s rising COVID-19 cases are only adding more challenges for area restaurants.

>>> STREAM CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS LIVE <<<

Haos on Church was supposed to reopen Sunday night, but had to stay closed.

New Year’s Eve weekend is about as big as they come for entertainment venues like it, and all Monday morning, owners were working on determining when they can open the doors.

READ: Coronavirus: CDC recommends shorter COVID isolation, quarantine times

Last week, Haos on Church joined a host of area restaurants who said they made the tough call to shut their doors amid virus outbreaks.

“Being a writer and a director, I don’t know if I could have written this story the way it’s panning out now,” said Blue Star with Haos on Church. “We also have to make sure the people that are well, are staying well.”

With every decision based on the safety of guests and staff, Star joins many other business owners this year asking for understanding when doors reopen.

READ: Free vaccination events to take place throughout Orlando this week

“Most of us are working completely understaffed and doing our best to give our best service, and sometimes it’s really, really hard, and I just ask for people to have patience please,” Star said.

Star said there won’t be enough staff for Haos on Church to open Thursday, but the plan is to be open Friday so customers can celebrate and ring in the new year there.

Coronavirus symptom checker: Does a cough mean omicron, a cold or the flu?



Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.

Adam Poulisse, WFTV.com

Adam Poulisse joined WFTV in November 2019.