LA County’s Newly Tightened Safer-At-Home Restrictions Start Today

Los Angeles County has once again entered into a more restrictive phase of the pandemic, with an all new Safer-at-Home order in effect as of today. The news, announced last week (after much speculation) by the county’s Department of Public Health, sets increasing restrictions on everyday life as an attempt to quell the rapidly-rising number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in the area. Here’s what it means for average citizens and restaurant diners:

• Gatherings of any size with people not in one’s immediate household are prohibited. No park get-together potlucks, no beach days with friends.
• Beaches, trails, and parks remain open, with social distancing rules in effect, and no gatherings of any kind. Playgrounds are closed.

Restaurants, as part of a separate order taken up by the county Board of Supervisors and the DPH last week, have closed all outdoor on-site dining, meaning they are available for curbside pickup, takeout, or delivery only. That order lasts at least three weeks, though with cases still rising, it could be pushed out even further.

The new safer-at-home order is currently slated to last at least three weeks, meaning restrictions could be eased before the Christmas holiday, however unlikely that may seem at the moment. Conversely, more restrictions could be added if cases continue to soar and if people don’t follow the new guidelines, including options to ban all non-essential travel, to close parks and beaches, and

In other news:

• Hippo in Highland Park is starting lunch today. Hours run daily from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for takeout and delivery, with dishes like fried chicken sandwiches, the ERB burger, and more on offer.
• A fire on Tuesday, November 24 has closed Mistral restaurant in Sherman Oaks for the foreseeable future. Ownership says they will rebuild.
• Speaking of Sherman Oaks, Casa Vega has flipped back into a drive-thru restaurant for the time being. Meanwhile, ownership there has collaborated with the Foo Fighters band on a limited edition taco, with proceeds going to No Us Without You.

• Dulan’s Soul Food has won the 2020 Minority-Owned Business Achievement Award given out by the US Chamber of Commerce.
• Area restaurants continue to move to previous (or new) takeout models given the moment, from Lasa in Chinatown to the weeks-old Fellow Traveler Wine Bar in West Hollywood. Gigi’s, the new French restaurant in Hollywood, will convert to a wine shop, restaurant, and drive-thru, while up in the Encino Scratch Bar has returned with a take-home tasting menu for $125 per person.
• All Day Baby is closed in Silver Lake for now, following a positive COVID-19 test among staff.