In the first few months of the pandemic, a sports bar and tavern in Lansdale followed the rules. They shut down, then reopened to provide takeout, serve customers outdoors, and sling beer and wings at reduced capacity indoors with tables spaced out.
But after Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf ordered a new prohibition on indoor dining statewide, Panico’s Neighborhood Grill & Sports Tavern is operating at 100% capacity. On Thursday, they hosted karaoke.
“I see what’s happening to my industry,” owner Rob Panico said. “We just celebrated our 100th year last year doing business in this town. I don’t want to go out not swinging.”
Panico’s is one of a growing number of Pennsylvania businesses, mostly restaurants and gyms, that are openly defying the state’s recent orders, which ban indoor service at restaurants, gyms, casinos, and theaters through Jan. 4.
Many of the businesses are organizing in Facebook groups that have amassed tens of thousands of members. They use the pages to share advice on how to flout the mandates, pass around lists of hundreds of businesses they say are ignoring the restrictions, and post anti-Wolf memes.
Meanwhile, a web of enforcement agencies including the Wolf administration, county health departments, and police are coordinating to respond to the businesses they say are breaking the law. Health officials are pleading with owners to comply, and at least one county has told small businesses they won’t qualify for financial support if they defy the mandates.
State Police Liquor Control Enforcement officers this week issued 17 warnings and 11 notices of violation to establishments that failed to follow COVID-19 restrictions. The notices precede a citation and investigations are ongoing, so police have not released the names of the establishments.
The state Department of Agriculture on Monday also warned dozens of restaurants they risk a closure order if they fail to comply, but hasn’t released updated enforcement figures since Wednesday.
At least one restaurant, a Kutztown diner, appears to have received a closure order. The restaurant posted on Facebook a photo of the placard — including the name of the food safety inspector — and said it’s continuing to operate indoors anyway. The photo then traveled, being shared across other groups by users who oppose Wolf’s restrictions and cheered the diner for staying open. The diner’s owners declined an interview request.
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