Creepy or smart? Virginia restaurant uses dining mannequins to fill empty seats

If you choose to dine in at one restaurant in Virginia, you might find yourself seated near guests who are unusually still.

That’s because the Inn at Little Washington is filling seats left empty for social distancing with mannequins, the Washingtonian reported.

As restaurants begin to reopen for dine-in guests, they must change the way they do things in order to comply with social distancing measures required by states, according to Departures. That’s why the Inn came up with this creative, yet creepy, way to make the space feel less empty, Eater Washington DC reported.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced restaurants can begin accepting guests for outdoor seating at 50% capacity starting May 15, according to the Washingtonian. But the Inn doesn’t have outdoor seating, so it plans to reopen on May 29 at half-capacity, the Eater reported.

Patrick O’Connell, the chef and proprietor of the Inn, partnered with Arlington’s Signature Theater to dress the mannequins in 40s-style outfits, according to the Eater. The servers are expected to offer the dolls wine and ask them how they’re enjoying their visit, the Washingtonian reported.

“I’ve always had a thing for mannequins — they never complain about anything, and you can have lots of fun dressing them up,” O’Connell told Departures. “When we needed to solve the problem of social distancing and to reduce our restaurant’s occupancy by half, the solution seemed obvious — fill it with interestingly dressed dummies. This would allow plenty of space between real guests and elicit a few smiles and provide some fun photo ops.”

Restaurants elsewhere are also making arrangements as they begin to reopen, like Twisted Citrus in Ohio, which is putting up clear shower curtains between tables, the Miami Herald reported. The state requires tables to be six feet apart, or there needs to be a barrier between them, according to the Herald.

Hanny’s in Phoenix is installing plexiglass between tables to keep guests separate, the Herald reported. Restaurants in coronavirus hot spots, though, are taking even more precautions in accordance with state laws, according to the Herald.

Customers could be eating with paper plates and plastic silverware in New York, the Herald reported. There will also be a need for more outdoor seating, according to the Herald.

This story was originally published May 12, 2020 at 3:42 PM with the headline "Creepy or smart? Virginia restaurant uses dining mannequins to fill empty seats."