With the arrival of winter and the U.S. coronavirus outbreak in full swing, the restaurant industry — expected to lose more than $230 billion in 2020 — is clinging to techniques for sustaining outdoor dining even through the cold and vagaries of a U.S. winter.
Yurts, greenhouses, igloos, tents and all kinds of partly open outdoor structures have popped up at restaurants around the country. Owners have turned to these as a lifeline that can help fill some tables by offering the possibility at least of a safer dining experience.
“We’re trying to do everything we can to expand the outdoor dining season for as long as possible,” says Mike Whatley with the National Restaurant Association.
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