‘Karaoke is back’? Boise bars are reopening despite coronavirus shutdown. Here’s how.
Do you miss singing buzzed karaoke in a dark room? Shooting pool? Watching NASCAR on TV while a bartender pours you and your crew another round?
Are you just over this stupid pandemic?
Fine, you blockhead. Charlie Brown’s Lounge, 5783 W. Overland Road, just reopened — and with power-drinking hours, no less: 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily. The dive bar is promoting a limited food menu (mmm, the seafood pasta looked tasty!) on Facebook. Also, starting Friday? “Karaoke is back everyone! Come sing your hearts out this weekend.”
Wait, though. Aren’t Ada County bars closed because of COVID?
Hoping for details, I phoned Charlie Brown’s and left a message Tuesday with a friendly employee who said he was newly hired.
The owners’ response? Crickets.
Speaking of Cricket’s, that neighborhood bar at 1228 S. Oakland Ave. reopened last week. There are other Boise bars that you might not realize are slinging drinks, too — such as Jumpin’ Janet’s, 572 S. Vista Ave.
Like other bars, Charlie Brown’s and Cricket’s temporarily shuttered when Central District Health ordered Ada County back to Stage 3 of the Idaho Rebounds plan in late June. Under the public health order, bars must remain closed, but restaurants can operate under safety guidelines.
Being closed was causing Cricket’s to hemorrhage financially, general manager Layne Rosenkrance explained in a phone interview. But because Cricket’s has a food establishment license — “Taco Tuesdays” is a quarter-century tradition — it was able to reopen within Ada County’s rules.
A food establishment license means that a bar can qualify as a restaurant under the current public health order, according to Natasha Ferney, food safety program manager for Central District Health. (It does not mean that minors can enter a bar as if it’s a traditional restaurant. That designation comes from Idaho State Police’s Alcohol Beverage Control.) Charlie Brown’s has had a food establishment license for years, Ferney added.
Bars try to survive COVID
Is this a pandemic loophole for bars? I wouldn’t say that. But five bars in Central District Health’s jurisdiction have applied for food establishment licenses since the coronavirus shutdown, according to the agency. To Ferney’s knowledge, she said, none of the applicants has been approved yet. The process includes a plan review to make sure the business is compliant with Idaho food code, as well as an inspection before the annual license is granted.
Whatever the case, you can’t blame bars for trying — if they take COVID-19 precautions seriously. Theoretically, that’s a concern.
Christine Myron, public information officer at Central District Health, said that under Ada County’s public health order, a bar needs to “function” like a restaurant. “This means that in addition to serving food, customers will be seated and served at tables that are appropriately spaced apart and the bar top closed to customer seating,” Myron said via email.
Cricket’s has done that, plus capped capacity at about 40, Rosenkrance said, instead of the normal 167. He’s also closing at 11 p.m. instead of the typical 2 a.m. — a more responsible decision when it comes to serving alcohol.
Business is tough, he admitted. That $4 all-you-can eat Taco Tuesday bar has been nixed temporarily. Because, you know, it’s a taco bar. Ain’t this pandemic fun?
Sometimes, people’s refusal to play along makes it even better.
“The other day when I worked, I had probably 15 or 18 people that I had to tell them to wear a mask,” Rosenkrance said, “so they just turned around and didn’t come back in. So they must not have had any.”
A cure? Good grief, Charlie Brown’s
Facebook accounts associated with Charlie Brown’s (you’ll find two) indicated that masks are required until you are seated.
“What if someone has a medical condition that prevents them from wearing a mask?” a commenter asked.
“Well then they are like me and we don’t have to wear one,” Charlie Brown’s responded.
“What if I have a note that says I don’t have to wear one?” another inquired.
“You don’t even need a note. Just saying that you have a medical condition is enough ...,” Charlie Brown’s wrote.
Both Charlie Brown’s accounts also shared links to a website touting the misleading “America’s Frontline Doctors” video recently yanked by Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. “There is a cure!!!” Charlie Brown’s wrote. “Share this before it gets taken off FB again.”
Good grief, Charlie Brown’s.
Look, I feel super-bad for bars. And their employees. Heck, even barflies. Everyone is frustrated. This situation is terrible.
Bar owners? Restaurant owners? They’re just trying to eke out a semblance of a living. And in the end, try not to go bankrupt doing it.
“We’re just kind of flying by the seat of our pants,” Rosenkrance said. “... We’re just trying to serve food and get a few drinks.”
This story was originally published August 6, 2020 at 8:46 AM.