Pints, people and plastic barriers

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This article was published 18/03/2021 (1704 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Paul Deonaraine sat at the bar in a green Boston Bruins jersey Wednesday night.

Alone, technically, but not really — throughout the night, imbibers in the relatively packed King’s Head pub seemed to recognize him and what might have once been a hug became an elbow bump and a yelled conversation two metres or so apart. While he elbow-bumped and yelled, a masked server placed a fourth drink in front of him without saying a word.

“It feels awesome to be here,” he told the Free Press, and he clearly meant it. Deonaraine’s been a regular at the Exchange District pub for 15 years. A longtime Bruins fan, he’d purchased the jersey — shipped across the border —in anticipation of St. Patrick’s Day last year and was crushed when he wasn’t able to wear it out.

He’s waited two years to sit at this bar and wear this jersey. It’s the last night out for Deonaraine for a while — he’s taking a break after this, he said; when asked why, he grins and says “personal reasons” — but has planned his evening out accordingly: two hours outdoors on the patio, enjoying the warm weather, and then a seat at the bar to catch the streamed concert from American Celtic punk band Dropkick Murphys till close.

Deonaraine wasn’t alone. Across the city, pubs and bars hosting their first St. Patrick’s Day since 2019 saw tables of socially distanced green-clad patrons, with lines snaking out the door starting early in the day. Walking into the King’s Head, for a brief moment, felt surreal — for a minute, before taking in the masks, barriers and spaced-out seating that have become staples of our everyday life, it could have been 2019 again.

There’s still some cognitive dissonance in providing your contact information to a pub so the province can contact you should you be exposed to a potentially deadly virus. Asked if he felt some lingering nervousness being there that night, Deonaraine joked he didn’t “after a couple drinks,” but quickly took a more serious tone. The King’s Head was quick to implement closures, show up for the community, and introduce strict cleaning and distancing rules, he said, and that gave him more comfort than he would have going anywhere else.

“It’s also supporting a business that was proactive in shutting down the day before St. Patrick’s Day (last year), which would’ve been their cash cow,” he said. “There’s a lot of working parts (that went into) me being here right now.”

In Osborne Village, the Toad in the Hole pub was seeing relative success in the time of COVID-19, manager Sam Matthews said.

At one point in the day, people had been waiting outside to enter, in part because customers who wanted a pint had to order a meal as well, a pandemic regulation that kept people around longer than usual.

“The customers are very respectful — more so on this reopening than the first reopening — respectful of the regulations, I mean,” he said. “Everyone seems to be a little more in line and understanding. The music’s not cranked, obviously, but everybody’s still having fun and shaking off a bit of the cabin fever.”

The Toad reopened on Monday, but Matthews said Wednesday marked the first day customers really showed up, adding that advertising for the reopening was low-key. The return to business felt particularly meaningful considering the Toad’s unfortunate luck a year ago — after closing its original Osborne Street location on New Year’s Eve, the pub was slated to reopen at a new spot down the street on that St. Patrick’s Day. The pandemic ruined that.

A year later, however, Matthews said he was “thrilled” to be back at it.

“I would say it’s a success. Everyone’s trying to make the best of it and being respectful,” he said.

Meanwhile, at Fionn MacCool’s on Grant Avenue, live music was part of the experience for a full patio. In true DIY style, one-man band Grant Leutschaft performed cover songs from the back of a truck owned by restaurant owner Jay Kilgour’s father.

On Saturday, the province loosened regulations for patios: up to six people from different households are allowed at a table.

The new rules were the perfect opportunity for Kerrine Wilson and her five friends to meet up at Fionn’s Wednesday evening. All six belong to a jazz enthusiast club, which would meet every Tuesday night pre-pandemic. They weren’t able to meet virtually — “We’re older, you know,” she joked — so the close-knit group hasn’t seen each other in months.

Wilson, decked out in a green hat and scarf, said she was overjoyed to see her friends again and celebrate one of her favourite holidays.

Her plan for the rest of the evening? Finishing a Guinness — “Of course,” she said — and potato skins, her favourite.

“I’m Irish. I just love the energy, the excitement, the food is wonderful. It’s great to be with my friends again.”

Back at the King’s Head, maybe three metres away from where Deonaraine was elbow-bumping and yelling at the bar, Jim and Di McDougall sat on the same side of a booth tucked away in the corner, shrouded in protective glass.

Decked out in full green regalia and picking at the last bits of a fish and chips plate and two drinks — “some kind of IPA” for Di, a Guinness for Jim — Di beamed when asked what brought them out that night.

“It’s my favourite day besides my birthday,” she said.

They were both quick to say they weren’t overly worried about the possibility of exposure at the King’s Head, as they were more or less behind glass and were following all protocols. If the case counts were higher, they’d likely be at home.

Normally, St. Patrick’s Day is a cultural event for them — they typically take in Irish dancing and live music. This year, however, they planned to finish their drinks, take in the first period of the Jets game and head home.

“It’s still not the same as a normal year, but Diane’s always crazy excited about (the day),” Jim said. “So she really wanted to go have lunch and a few beers, and just sort of seeing people outside and inside is a big deal.”

Di’s bright smile belied the tears that began to well up while her husband talked. The smile didn’t leave even after she quickly wiped her eyes.

“I’m so elated to be here today,” she said. “It’s fun.”

There was a feeling of relief that permeated pubs and eateries that evening, the chance for a semblance of normalcy after a year of isolation that has left many exhausted and eager for a chance to reconnect. Walking out of a busy pub and onto a busy patio that night made it apparent people were nostalgic for a time that wasn’t that long ago — and that they possibly saw a return to that time on the horizon.

 

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: malakabas_