New Pa. websites promote restaurants and show violators of covid measures

New interactive dashboards announced Tuesday by state officials allow users to find open Pennsylvania restaurants, which are offering takeout and those accused of violating covid-19 mitigation measures.

The Covid Inspection Dashboard allows users to search restaurants by name, county, city or ZIP code. The dashboard lists whether any violations have been noted at the restaurant.

Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding said the sites are an effort to work with businesses to drive online sales while accommodating the safety of customers.

“The vast majority of restaurant owners have been following the state’s mitigation orders,” Redding said in a statement. “As we continue our work to protect public health and safety, we can all do our part by supporting businesses from the comfort of our homes through takeout or delivery, or confidently and safely dining out at self-certified businesses.”

A second dashboard, CarryoutPA, allows people to search for restaurants near them offering delivery or curbside pickup. Users can search by city or ZIP code or by cuisine — including which offer carryout wine, beer and cocktails.

The website tells users how to buy gift cards and leave safety-related reviews. A banner atop the site links to a donation page to help support hospitality workers through parelief.org.

The site was developed by the Pittsburgh Restaurant and Lodging Association “as a way for restaurants to easily share their takeout information,” said Stephanie Otterson, a spokeswoman for the association.

Pennsylvania’s mitigation measures mean restaurants can only allow indoor dining at 50% of their normal occupancy limit. Restaurant owners must complete a covid-related online self-certification process in order to have that 50% capacity. Restaurants that do not complete the free certification can operate only at 25% of their normal occupancy limit.

Alcohol sales must be accompanied by a food order. No alcohol may be served after 11 p.m.. There is no set date on which those restrictions will expire.

Restaurants and bars are just over a week removed from three-week orders that halted indoor dining and shut down gyms, casinos and other entertainment venues, a move that came in response to rising rates of covid-19 in the weeks following the Thanksgiving holiday.

“Being able support our restaurants, owners and employees — some of whom may have been in our neighborhoods and lives as long as we can remember — gives us a sense of community that many of us need during this time,” said Dennis Davin, secretary of the Department of Community and Economic Development. “It’s a way to see some of our favorite faces, albeit safely behind masks, and make those connections that many of us are missing from businesses we are used to frequenting.”