Restaurants are starting to open up their dining rooms amid the coronavirus pandemic. While it may be a step towards normality, it is far from packed dining rooms. Most restaurants are required to open with only 50 percent capacity, leaving dining rooms bare. The Inn at Little Washington, a three Michelin-star restaurant in Virginia decided the half-empty didn't work for them so they added mannequins to fill the empty tables.
I've got to say, one of the most uncomfortable experiences is eating in an empty restaurant. The servers are constantly hovering (or nowhere to be seen) and the empty dining room feels eerie and makes one question why the dining room is empty. Is the food bad? Is there something wrong with this place? But nothing would creep me out more than sitting next to a table filled with life-size costume mannequins dressed in 1940s garb.
Virginia Restaurant Fills Dining Room with Mannequins
According to a statement reported by CNN, Chef Patrick O'Connell of The Inn at Little Washington shared, "I've always had a thing for mannequins — they never complain about anything and you can have lots of fun dressing them up."
The restaurant teemed with local Signature Theatre for the social distancing mannequins. "When The Inn at Little Washington reached out with the idea to costume mannequins, we thought it was a fun and creative way for them to conform to social distancing guidelines," said Signature Theatre's Managing Director Maggie Boland in a statement. "We jumped at the chance to collaborate with another of Virginia's great cultural destinations in support of their reopening."
While it may seem a little "out there" it is a great way to add a little bit of humor to covid-19 stress. And if you've been to The Inn at Little Washington, you know things can get a little bit silly. The restaurant regularly sends around a cheese specialist that pushes a mooing cow cart and has a strict "no wet bikinis" dining room dress code.
The Inn at Little Washington plans on opening the dining room on May 29 and you can make reservations on the site.
