Safety First

We want to make sure that we operate as safely as possible for our guests and staff, so we’ve designed a layout and protocols to minimize risk. Here’s a summary of our COVID-19 safety plan:

1) Reduced capacity – We are only serving 3 tables in our main floor dining room, and 2 in our upstairs room.
2) All staff are vaccinated.
3) Ventilation – To maximize air flow, doors are kept open when weather permits. Additionally, kitchen and bathroom exhaust fans are kept on during operating hours. The central HVAC system also continuously brings in fresh air, as well as filtering the air from inside the building.
4) Tables are separated by 8′ high acrylic dividers, avoiding the sharing of exhaled air between groups of guests.
5) Air filtering – Every section/table has a HEPA air purifier, continuously cleaning the air nearby.
6) Masks – All staff wear masks at all times. Guests are required to wear masks when away from their table.
For a demonstration of how our air cleaning and partitions work, see the video below which was done at our sibling restaurant, Osteria Du. A smoke machine is used to simulate exhaled air, turning on every 15 seconds. The video is at 10x speed. When the particles were measured at an adjacent table, there was only a trace amount – this is comparable to dining outdoors on a patio with some distance.

Dining Room Layout

Much of our understanding of how the virus spreads is based on case studies, and we’ve paid particular attention to a study of infection in a Guangzhou restaurant. This study illustrates the spread of coronavirus from one group to two other groups at nearby tables. Researchers believe that the air conditioning system propelled droplets/aerosolized particles across the room. Diners at other nearby tables outside this path of airflow were not infected, despite similar proximity. No staff were infected, even though this occurred before mask-wearing became common for restaurant workers.

With this information in mind, our layout minimizes shared air between staff and guests. The floorplan for Avelo’s main dining room shows dotted lines representing 8′ high acrylic partitions. The airflow from air conditioning and heat still goes over the tops of the partitions (the ceiling is about 2′ higher than the partitions), but most particles in the air are not able to move between tables. There’s also a HEPA air purifier in each section that continuously cycles the air through a filter about 9 times per hour.

Restaurant in Guangzhou, China

 

Avelo floor plan