STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. On Saturday night at Jac Mao in Dongan Hills, a whoosh of ice and water clinked against glass as a waiter filled goblets from a pitcher. Patrons chatted in the backdrop and forgotten sounds of a restaurants dining room returned after a two-month hiatus.

Owner Jac Mao himself carved Peking duck table-side as a few servers hustled behind him. A masked Mao said, Its so good to be back really. One thing sorely missing as lounge crowds are banned, he pointed out, was the crew that sat belly-up to his bar rail until late the evening. Still, Mao said his regulars have returned to him as of Friday but they instead took their usual libations at linen-cloth lined tables.

Mao chuckled, Vodka with orange. Campari and soda. We remembered everyones usual. Some things dont change.

But the face of dining certainly has for the industry in this new era of serving patrons in the COVID-19 recovery stage. Food establishments must present disposable menus or those protected by meticulously cleaned, protective plastic jackets. Shooting a thermometer at guests foreheads and collecting contact data now are as rote as saying hello at the door. And at 25% capacity, the space between tables leaves six to seven-foot gaps in dining rooms, ample space for social distancing and perhaps more of a private experience among parties. A new curfew time of 11 p.m. is in effect as of Sunday, Feb. 14.

Jac Mao stands in his restaurant as patrons return for indoor dining. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

SAVORING THE MOMENT

On the inaugural eve of sit-down service, Barbara Martin dined with six other family members and friends in the back room of The Local in Castleton Corners. After almost a year of missing the luxury she said, It felt almost magical to be out again after being deprived for so long. Like a drink after a drought.

Proprietor Joe Fauci of La Fontana in Oakwood and La Fontana Sorellina in Annadale said, So far so good. Not that 25% is enough but we are in so much better shape than in the last two months. The LaFa customers are ecstatic!

Fauci said his mostly vaccinated staff also delighted to be back to the business. He said, A lot of smiles around here and its not overcrowded. He acknowledged that some LaFa diehards were not comfortable coming out but in those instances they ordered food to go; takeout was strong so far this weekend.

Customers might be happier than us they congratulate us on the re-opening, said Fauci. Payroll this week will certainly be easier, he shared. And he hopes his wifes special occasion-decoration business will rev back up again soon. Her LS Party Express, like the Oakwood restaurant, has been in existence for over 35 years but on hold since March 2020 without gatherings and catered affairs.

But shell survive, said Fauci.

Hear the clink of ice in a glass? It's one of the sounds back in dining rooms as patrons return to restaurants in NYC. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)

A SOFT RE-OPENING

Maurizio Asperti shut his historic Basilio Inn in early December and introduced a soft opening on Saturday night.

I wasnt sure it was going to happen. People were happy to be out. Were turning 100 this year but waiting for this pandemic to subside before starting the celebrations, said Asperti.

The minimal capacities were a factor in reopening for entrepreneurs like Richie Holmes from Juicy Lucy in Ocean Breeze. He reported, Im closed until March 4 and am redoing the inside. We are going to wait until 50% on March 15 and Ill have the drive-in movies again on April 1. I think thats a bit more important right now rather than competing with all these places offering $20 and $25 half-trays of food. Holmes had switched up his barbecue format over the pandemic pivoting among the concepts of delivery only, a food and flick outdoor entertainment center and an authentic Italian menu.

In Richmond Valley, Sal Finocchiaro said his double storefront pizza parlor, Palermo Pizzeria had few takers for sit-down supping. He observed, With the 25% occupancy people went out to restaurants. We only had three tables last night. Im a little disappointed but delivery and pickup were not affected.

Bill Sorensen and wife, Beverly, savored broccoli rabe with sausage at Jimmy Max in Westerleigh. The last time the dined at the establishment it was outdoors in full sun on the sidewalk next to the bus stop.

We had a 5:45 reservation and it was great as usual, said Sorensen who was pleased with how far apart were tables. He added, Valentines Day will be at the Manor House for Beverlys special rack of lamb with risotto, tartufo. Decaf coffee with Sambuca will top it off.

However, a handful of restaurant enthusiasts polled for this story were pessimistic. Their experiences were dampened by fellow patrons. One East Shore resident eschewed the proximity of an over-beveraged neighbor who lingered unmasked, standing, over his familys table.

A North Shore woman told the Advance she was excited to return to a neighborhood haunt for a margarita but was horrified by the crowds behavior. She said, A table of girls next to me were very loud and obviously drunk. They were with another table of girls across the room. All they did were get up and run over there every five minutes with no masks, taking pictures, screaming. No one said anything.

She feels this kind of irresponsibility will be the demise of indoor dining and customer confidence going forward. Yet she also empathizes with business owners.

Said the patron, Heres the thing. The COVID police will be out. They definitely couldve gotten a citation or been shut down, then cry and have a GoFundMe. These girls were so drunk and everyone was looking. They wouldnt sit down and certainly didnt put masks on when they were running all over. I hope [the business] gets shut if thats allowed again.

Generally, restaurant owners were optimistic. Terence Haggerty of Jodys Club Forest said, Everything went really well. Im very happy to be able to have people inside. His hope is to trend upward with higher capacities in the very near future.

Pamela Silvestri is Advance Food Editor. She can be reached at silvestri@siadvance.com.

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Hows the indoor dining going so far on Staten Island? - SILive.com