Hong Kong eases restrictions for restaurant dining

Restaurants in Hong Kong served dine-in customers till 10pm on Thursday after coronavirus social distancing restrictions were lifted.

The new measures means restaurants can now accept diners four hours later than previous restrictions.

The Hong Kong restaurant trade is one area of the economy that has been hard hit by the virus.

The relaxation of rules comes as daily new infection cases dipped below two digits this week for first time in months.

Hong Kong's fourth wave of COVID-19 started in late November last year, and the government tightened restrictions in December as a result.

Restaurant customer Ben Stobart is very happy to be dining out on the occasion of his birthday.

"I'm obviously happy that it opened on the day of my birthday," Stobart said, dining with three of his friends, he added, "everybody's being very sensible about it, sticking to tables of four, people are wearing masks."

All customers who enter restaurants have to use the Hong Kong's government's contact tracing app, "LeaveHomeSafe", and scan a QR code on their smartphones or register their personal information.

Restaurant staff are required to take COVID test every 14 days, and any violation of these measures will result in dine-in services banned for up to two weeks.

Alice Douine, manager of 22 Ships, a Spanish tapas restaurant in Wan Chai, downtown Hong Kong Island, is happy to follow government rules as long as the restaurant is able to reopen.

"I think these are the measures that are necessary," Douine said, despite the restrictions to service she said they were "always happy to do it anyway."

Many restaurants in Hong Kong have been fighting for survival during the pandemic.

For Coco Tan, her Italian pizza restaurant has been focusing on take-away and delivery in order to stay afloat.

Other businesses such as cinemas, gyms, beauty salons and massage parlours are also allowed to reopen from Thursday.

Bars which do not serve meals are still not allowed to reopen.