The Del Ray-based Neighborhood Restaurant Group on Monday closed numerous locations in Alexandria in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The restaurants Evening Star Cafe, Buzz Bakeshop, Columbia Firehouse, Vermilion, Rustico and Planet Wine will be closed for dining but will continue to operate delivery and take-out, according to the restaurants’ social media pages.
There are two residents who have tested presumptive positive for the COVID-19 virus, and in his monthly newsletter Mayor Justin Wilson said, “There is every expectation that this number will grow.”
“This outbreak will have dramatic impacts on the health of our residents, the survival of many businesses that operate in our City, the jobs those businesses create and the finances of your City government,” Wilson said. “The collateral impacts will create human service challenges that will face our community for months and years to come.”
With the recent restrictions on bars and restaurants in Maryland and the District, many business owners wondering if Virginia is going to be next.
“As recent days have unfolded, we have struggled to balance our dedication to providing a refuge to our guests from the stresses of daily life against our unavoidable place in the ecosystems within which diseases like this one may be spread,” the restaurant group said in the statement.
Old Town Books also recently announced that it was closing shop indefinitely, but would still fill online orders and subscriptions.
https://www.facebook.com/eveningstarVA/photos/a.301122745205/10164946375020206/?type=3&theater
Photo via Evening Star Cafe/Facebook
