Gastronomy on Sylt: "The guests have tears in their eyes"

At first glance, everything is as always in Sylt's "Sansibar" - the dunes, the sea, the North Sea breeze. The tables are fully occupied, the children are playing in the sand, and Herbert Seckler, the boss of Germany's most famous beach bar, is sitting at his regular seat on the terrace, right next to the entrance. A Diet Coke in front of you. Keep your eyes on the hustle and bustle around you. Everything as always. And yet some things are different. Seckler had a year of Corona behind him, the restaurant was closed for months, the island was deserted. The tourists have been allowed to come back since May, at Seckler the beautiful and the rich, the footballers and the television celebrities mingle with the people. He entertains 4,000 to 5,000 guests on good days, which is not possible under Corona conditions. But he doesn't care. The main thing is that there is life in the booth again.

Bettina Weiguny

Freelance writer in the economy of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.

• Follow I follow

Mr. Seckler, what's the mood like after a year of loneliness?

We have opened the Zanzibar again for four weeks, the atmosphere is gigantic.

People come here, see the dunes, the sea and have tears in their eyes for joy.

Your guests have to queue up at the parking lot and wait up to an hour.

Aren't they totally annoyed until they finally have a place?

No, they are just grateful.

Glad they can come back.

Are the belts tighter for guests after Corona, or do they let it rip?

We feel a great need to catch up.

People want to go out, have a glass of wine together, celebrate.

There is no sign of restraint.

Do people adhere to the corona requirements?

Yeah yeah

All.

So do we.

We have measured all the distances here, we will point out the mask to everyone should someone forget to put it on.

People do that immediately.

Sylt was a model region for the opening, after which there were several hotspots on the island with corona outbreaks.

Don't you have that under control?

We didn't have a single case here, but the authorities declared us a hotspot at the same time.

Why?

Because there is so much going on here, our terrace here in the open air is potentially dangerous from the point of view of the law enforcement officers.

The staff is constantly tested, we strictly adhere to all requirements.

Nevertheless, it was said: So, we now check you four times a day.

So now they run through here several times a day and see whether they discover any corona violations.

You always have the feeling that we are making some kind of mistake.

But well, that's the way it is.

We are grateful that we can work again.

How did Corona affect you financially?

Our income halved last year, we had 50 percent less sales.

If we only had the gastronomy, the slump would have been even greater.

But the online trade in wine and fashion has caught up a bit.

How do you put away such a year?

I'm almost 70 now, I don't mind that anymore.

I like the quiet.

No wonder others retire at that age.

I sat here, looked at the dunes and enjoyed the quiet.

The time was very good for me.

I've also been vaccinated twice - a great gift!

You were here every day even during the compulsory break - without a business?

Yes, my living room is here in the dunes, I don't want to go anywhere else.

I am happy here.

The guests, the money, the hustle and bustle - you didn't miss any of that?