Watering hole owners elated by lifting of booze ban

It was a mad rush to get the beers cold and protocols in place, but after weeks of turmoil and uncertainty under the booze ban, the owners of watering holes across Nelson Mandela Bay were raring to go on Tuesday.

Their excitement was shared by beachgoers and surfing enthusiasts, who said President Cyril Ramaphosa’s easing of the restrictions was long overdue.

For many, it was an opportunity to start picking up the pieces — to try to get back on their feet after the many retrenchments, depletion of their savings and little to no income during a period which is historically the most profitable.

Surfing SA president Johnny Bakker was overjoyed that the beaches were open again.

Liquor traders, meanwhile, said they were prepared to work with the government to ensure responsible drinking and compliance with the disaster management regulations.

Caught off guard by just how soon they were allowed to trade, Richmond Hill Brewing Co (RHBC) owner Niall Cook spent much of Tuesday running around to get his kegs topped up and the establishment Covid-19 compliant.

“But I would not trade today’s problems for any other problem,” he said.

“I think it’s a rather good problem to have.”

Barney’s Tavern co-owner Craig Mittens said together with the lifting of the alcohol ban, the extended trading hours were a relief.

Situated on the Summerstrand beachfront, Mittens said the opening of beaches also meant more walk-ins — something already evident by noon on Tuesday as beachgoers popped in for an ice-cold draught.

Ramaphosa announced on Monday night that non-essential establishments such as bars and restaurants would be permitted to trade until 10pm, to give their workers time to get home before the extended 11pm curfew.

But for many restaurant and bar owners the damage had already been done.

Mittens said he was still under enormous pressure from his landlord, who had provided no rental relief.

“It has been difficult to keep staff motivated with next to no customers this past month, which is traditionally a very busy time for us.”

He said 2021 marked Barney’s 30th birthday and he was hopeful they would still be able to turn things around.

Louis Janse van Rensburg, co-owner of Nineteen33 in Fairview, the only speakeasy bar in the city, said he and his business partner, Jacques van de Haar, had suffered immensely under the ban.

Van de Haar said they now needed to try to salvage what they could.

He said they had lost about R2.1m in turnover during the lockdown, taking into account their online sales, tastings and the trade of Nineteen33.

“We were just bleeding, hoping for better days,” Janse van Rensburg said.

“We are  incredibly relieved at finally being able to trade again.

“It’s about trying to catch up now. It’s been a nightmare.

“We have had to go into our own savings to try to stay ahead of things.

“We had good support online by people pre-ordering, so we were lucky there.”

Charl Muller, owner of Candy’s Revue Bar in Walmer, said they had been forced to close their doors between December 19 and January 15.

“This has most definitely not been the usual festive season we have become accustomed to.

“With all the bans in place, specifically targeting PE, it resulted in a sharp decline in tourism and our turnover was negatively affected.”

Muller said they had reopened on January 15, but with a significantly reduced staff.

“To keep our business afloat, we had to make difficult decisions,” he said.

“We closed our kitchen and our admin and maintenance teams were placed on short time.

“Our staff were ultimately affected most negatively.

“My ultimate goal is to start re-employing our former staff members.”

Cook said most in the tourism industry had to dip into the money set aside for the quieter winter months.

“This meant they were still likely to feel the pinch in the coming months.

Concerned Township Licensed Liquor Traders’ Association member and owner of Kwa Joe’s Tavern in Kwazakhele, Mongameli Ngqokwe, said liquor traders were eager to play their part in the fight against Covid-19 while also maintaining their livelihoods and that of their employees.

Ngqokwe said the ban had crippled their businesses.

“We welcome the reopening of our establishments, though we are already severely bruised financially.

“We are always willing to work with the government, but what we ask is that they work and communicate better with us before deciding to shut down our businesses.

“When there is better communication between government and traders, then maybe we can all find better ways of operating when certain ways don’t work,” he said.

Eastern Cape Liquor Board CEO Nombuyiselo Makala urged liquor traders to take responsibility in ensuring their patrons adhered to the health and safety protocols.

“It is important to realise that Covid-19 is still here and we must continue to observe and adhere to all the conditions to ensure that liquor establishments do not become super-spreaders.

“This might compel the government to take the most undesirable action of banning the sale of alcohol again.” 

Bakker said the ban on recreational surfing had caused a ripple effect on surf schools, surf shops and suppliers as a whole.

“We have been canvassing for a long time to try to get our beaches reopened,” he said.

Summerstrand Surf Lifesaving Club chair Fanta Gous said they would be back in action from Sunday.

“We are stoked to get back to sea.”

Like the lifesaving club members who were dramatically chased off the beach by police in November, the owner of Oom Cola’s tavern in Zwide, Zuko Gqalane, had watched as partygoers were dispersed from outside his premises in December.

While he would continue to do all in his power to enforce compliance inside the premises, Gqalane said he had no control over what people did outside his property.

He called for law enforcement instead to step up in that regard.

Economic development mayoral committee member Siyasanga Sijadu welcomed the reopening of the city’s beaches.

“By reopening the beaches we hope that the tourism industry can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

“This would also be made better if our status as a Covid-19 hotspot is removed,” Sijadu said.

She said the closure of beaches, coupled with the alcohol ban, had placed a terrible strain on the hospitality industry as a whole.

“We have a three-tiered recovery plan developed in partnership with the tourism industry and approved by council.”

Sijadu said much of the plan was aligned to the National Treasury recovery plan, of which much had already been implemented.

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