Amsterdam restaurant to trial ‘quarantine greenhouse’ concept

A restaurant in Amsterdam is to trial a new safe dining concept, which will see customers sat in individual greenhouses with meals slid into each structure on a wooden plank.

Image: Willem Velthoven, Mediamatic Amsterdam

Waterfront vegan restaurant and bar Mediamatic ETEN is to offer a plant-based four-course menu served in individual “quarantine greenhouses”.

The restaurant hopes to reopen on 21 May with meals served in so-called ‘chambres séparées’. Staff will wear protective gear and meals are served on wooden boards which can be slid through the greenhouse door and onto the table.

Mediamatic has “tested” the concept using members of staff and their households as pretend diners.

The restaurant stated that their novel concept was “fully dependent” on receiving permission from local and national authorities. Diners will receive a full refund should permission not be granted.

It follows news reported last month of the opening of a one-table restaurant in a Swedish field, where meals are delivered in a basket on a washing line.

Image: Willem Velthoven, Mediamatic Amsterdam

Customers at Mediamatic ETEN can pick a date and a time slot, either from 6pm to 8:30pm or from 8:30pm to 11pm, for a table for two. The greenhouses have space for a maximum of three people. Tables of three are charged an extra €40 at the door, while those wishing to dine alone will be offered a €40 discount on the price paid.

The initiative has already proved popular, with bookings full until the end of June.

According to the latest guidance, bars, restaurants and cafés in the Netherlands will be allowed to open outdoor spaces to customers from 1 June. Hospitality outlets will be permitted to serve a maximum of 30 people at one time, while staff and diners must observe social distancing rules, which in the Netherlands means staying 1.5 metres apart. Sites with up to 100 covers can reopen on 1 July as long as social distancing is observed.