GREENE King pubs will be pulling pints for customers once again from July 6 – and you can book a table from tomorrow.
Pubs have been given the go ahead to reopen from Saturday July 4 but the bar chain won't be welcoming back punters until Monday to make sure all branches are Covid-19 safe.
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Greene King plans to run a phased reopening of its 1,700 branches, with 1,294 – over two thirds of its portfolio – opening their doors on July 6.
It's not yet set a date for when it plans for the second phase to roll out and is waiting to see how the initial reopening of branches goes first.
One of the guidelines set out by the government is that pubs, restaurants and cafes should encourage customers to book ahead to help them limit the number of people inside at the same time.
Greene King is to start accepting bookings from midday on Friday June 26 and punters will have to do this via the app, which is free to download.
There won't be as many tables available to book as there were before lockdown so you might not want to hang around – exactly how many there are available varies depending on the size of the pub.
Greene King hasn't released a full list of pubs that will be reopening as part of phase one, but you can find out by clicking onto the app and typing in your postcode.
If your local comes up in the search and you're able to book from tomorrow then it will be open on July 6.
Going to the pub won't be the same as it was before lockdown though – Greene King gave The Sun a sneak peak into one of its branches to find out what punters can expect from its new "pub safe" rules.
Like rival businesses, such as Wetherspoon, Greene King has put up perspex screens to separate tables, and will only be operating at about 60 per cent capacity.
Markers have been placed on the floor to encourage social distancing and there will be a one-in-one-out system for the toilets.
The chain has installed new one-in-one-out red and green indicators on the entrances to the loos which you can flip with your elbow on your way in and out.
If you plan on eating in, some pubs will run a reduced menu, with around 20 per cent fewer items available to order.
There may be fewer roast dinners or burgers to choose from, but it'll still be serving pub grub classics such as fish and chips, and pie and mash.
Pubs with larger kitchens, such as Farmhouse Inns and Chef and Brewer, will offer the same menu as before.
At the entrances drinkers will see a new set of “pub safe” rules as they step inside and there will be hand sanitiser stations set up around branches.
Staff have undergone extra training on social distancing measures and will also be temperature checked before the start of every shift.
A host will be on hand at the entrance of the pub to welcome each customer, show them to their table and manage queues.
You'll also be able to place orders through the app – although you can still go to the bar but there will be perspex screens between you and the barman.
Punters will also find fewer people behind the bar, for example, where some pubs have four bartenders at one time, this number will go down to two.
But this is so there can be more workers on the pub floor to help with collecting of glasses and clearing of plates – kind of more like table service in a posh bistro.
Where staff are working outside of the protective bar area they can choose to wear PPE, such as plastic face visors.
A spokesperson for Greene King said: "We have decided to open our managed pubs from Monday July 6 so we can open as many as possible with our Pubsafe promises in place for the safety of our customers and team members.
"We look forward to welcoming back customers to our pubs and providing that great hospitable pub experience we all love."
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