Recently, I found myself in Amarillo. I needed to run a few errands and thought I would knock them all out in one trip. When I finished the last of my tasks, I realized it was a little later than I had anticipated and I was hungry. I needed food. What to do?
I could always grab fast food through a drive-thru, but I wasn’t really in the mood for a sandwich that had sat under a heat lamp. Honestly, I didn’t want to eat while driving either. That’s when I began to contemplate reclaiming one of my favorite relaxing activities – treating myself to dinner in a restaurant.
When COVID-19 first began to impact my world in March of this year, I ended all visits to restaurants. I was very selective about drive-thru and curbside delivery. I simply did not feel comfortable having my food prepared by someone I did not know. It has been nearly 5 months since I have visited a restaurant. That’s unheard of for me.
I still wasn’t convinced that I was ready for a visit, but I decided to take a look and see what restaurants were around. I realized that I wasn’t too far away from Aspen Creek Grill. It’s not a place that I normally frequent, but I thought that the chain would probably have a handle on safety issues. I decided to put on my mask and give it a try. If something didn’t feel right, I could always leave.
I arrived to find staff wearing gloves and masks. When I entered, I was offered a high table in the bar area. I wasn’t thrilled with that option, but told the host that I would at least take a look. As we walked back, the young man sensed my uncertainty and offered me a seat at the bar instead. This actually felt like a better option. I was facing the wall and was seated at the end of the bar, near the drink service area. No one was around except staff — all wearing their masks.
When I said this looked fine, the host asked me to wait just a moment while he cleaned the seating area for me. It was comforting to watch the bar being sanitized while I watched. The food was good, I was not near another person for most of my visit, and I feel like I claimed a little bit of my life back.
Do I plan to start entering restaurants on a regular basis again? No. I don’t want to put myself in an uncontrolled environment very often at all. Occasionally, I will visit a trusted restaurant that seems to have their act together. I’ll also visit during non-peak times. If I have another stressful week like this one, I may order something more than just an entree, too!
Livin' Life 