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Local restaurants are taking a unique approach to reopening indoor dining

Restaurant owners are using everything from mannequins to shower curtains to create social distancing and barriers.

The countdown is over for those who have been waiting to dine-in for the first time since Governor Mike DeWine ordered a stop on dine-in on March 15th because of COVID-19. 

On May 21, all restaurants will be allowed to reopen their doors, and several locations in Toledo and surrounding areas are coming up with unique ways to keep you safe. 

"[It's] both exciting and scary," said Rick Salem, the owner of Rick's City Diner near Sylvania.

"We're very excited," added Ralph Clark, a co-owner of Hamburger Mary's on the Docks. 

The reopening comes after several weeks of shutdown and it has owners concerned. 

"Everybody's excited, a little worried to see what it's gonna be like, if people are actually gonna come out," said David Keen, the managing partner of Pizza Papalis downtown. 

There are mixed emotions, but restaurant owners say they're planning to go above and beyond to keep you safe. 

Pizza Papalis in downtown Toledo is preparing by sanitizing from top to bottom. 

"With that obviously, there's gonna be a lot of different things going on. Social distancing, six-feet-away tables, barriers for those tables to make sure that we're in compliance as well," said Keen. 

Meanwhile, Salem is taking his own spin on things. 

He decided to add mannequins and stuffed animals to his seating to keep social distancing. 

"Someone mentioned, 'what are you gonna do with the empty chairs and tables?' We were thinking about possibly putting teddy bears, the animals. And then we thought of dolls, children's dolls," said Salem. 

And as for Hamburger Mary's, it's allowing performers to get creative once they're able to perform again. 

"Our queens have masks that they will be wearing. They've made them themselves, kind of interesting. They've done where they have a clear mouth so you can actually see them when they're doing their lip sync," said Clark. 

The restaurant owners all say they just hope to bring some type of normalcy back into your life. 

"Having that for people to be able to come in and enjoy, it gives Toledo something to still grasp. To be able to come down and enjoy themselves," said Clark. 

"We've been frowning for nine weeks. We've been upset, we've been complaining, we've been taking sides. We've been arguing. We've been...It's time to stop. No matter where we are, we have to be positive," added Salem. 

You can find all of these restaurants' new hours on their Facebook pages or their websites. 

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