TO: Interested Stakeholders
FROM: Governor Jay Inslee
DATE: May 11, 2020
SUBJECT: Partially Resuming the Dine-In Restaurant and Tavern Industry – Proclamation 20-25 

This memorandum serves as the criteria for partially resuming the dine-in restaurant and tavern industry under Phase 2 and is effective as of May 11, 2020. 

After consulting with stakeholders, we have developed the comprehensive Phase 2 – Dine-In Restaurant and Tavern Industry COVID-19 Requirements. These requirements apply as long as Gubernatorial Proclamation 20-25, or any extension thereof, is in effect or if adopted as rules by a federal, state or local regulatory agency. 

For purposes of this memorandum, “restaurants” and “taverns” include both indoor and outdoor seating for: 

Traditional dine-in restaurants, quick-serve food operations, fixed and mobile food trucks, and other prepared-food operations, including but not limited to, hotel kitchens and workplace cafeterias; Cafes, juice bars, and other businesses specializing in non-alcoholic beverages; Breweries, public houses, and other businesses serving open containers of alcohol. 

For purposes of this memorandum and the Dine-In Restaurant and Tavern Industry COVID-19 Requirements, the following activities are prohibited: 

Buffets, salad bars, salsa bars, and any other communal food source shared by people from different dining parties; and Bar-style seating of any kind. 

This memorandum supersedes any conflicting provision in the Appendix to Proclamation 20-25, “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers,” and stands in the place of any other omission from that document. 

No restaurant or tavern may operate indoor or sit-down services until they can meet and maintain all requirements, including providing materials, schedules and equipment required to comply. 

General questions about how to comply with safety practices can be submitted to the state’s Business Response Center at https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/2562f1caf5814c46a6bf163762263aa5. 

All other violations related to Proclamation 20-25 can be submitted at https://bit.ly/covidcompliance.