A masked waiter in a Parisian bar, June 15, 2020. -

Philippe Lopez / AFP

  • Is the IV license being used to close the establishments at 10 p.m.?

  • "The distinction is made between a drinking establishment selling alcoholic beverages primarily and a drinking establishment selling drinks on an ancillary basis accompanying a hot meal", summarizes Marcel Benezet, president of the cafes, bars, brasseries branch. of the GNI-Synhorcat.

  • Even he finds that there is "some vagueness in this story".

From theory to practice.

After the announcements of the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, last Wednesday placing Paris and its inner suburbs in "enhanced alert zone", the bars must from this Monday evening close their doors at 10 pm.

And this, unlike restaurants.

Because after many meetings and discussions in particular with the central town hall, the police headquarters had indeed ended up deciding that the bars will have to close at 10 pm and the restaurants which do not serve “no alcohol without food” would not be concerned. by this anti-Covid restriction.

But unclear areas remain a few hours from the entry into force of the measure.

"The drinking establishments will be closed from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m."

"We will use the maximum flexibility granted to the prefects for the closing time of drinking establishments, namely 22 hours," said the police headquarters in a message sent Friday to the mayors of the district.

"We are keen," she adds, "to preserve the restaurants from this measure, so they can continue to operate normally.

We must be aware of the fact that the dividing line between bars and restaurants, in law, is complex, but we think we have found a way to objectify this in the decree ”.

In summary, according to the prefecture, must close at 10 pm those "who sell alcoholic beverages primarily".

But what about a restaurant or a brasserie that can serve alcoholic beverages, or a bistro serving sandwiches in addition to its pints?

Until Sunday, October 11, "drinking establishments [bars, bistros with only an IV license] will be closed from 10 pm to 6 am", notes the PP.

This measure therefore does not concern restaurants with a large catering license, which may remain open, provided that a strict health protocol is respected.

"But the license is in fact not the main criterion", recalls for his part, Marcel Benezet, president of the branch of cafes, bars and breweries of GNI-Synhorcat, requested by

20 Minutes.

"The drink must remain an accessory"

“What you have to look at is the APE code [main activity carried out].

The distinction is therefore made between a drinking establishment selling alcoholic beverages primarily and a drinking establishment selling drinks on an ancillary basis accompanied by a hot meal.

In fact, the drink must remain an accessory, ”he explains.

Thus, for example, a cocktail bar will close this Monday evening, a tobacco bar will only close its counter and the brasseries and restaurants will remain open by serving only food and this, to people seated.

“Even if the police initially promise to do education, I fear certain situations, explains Marcel Benezet.

What will happen if you are at the table and have finished eating but there is still a bottle of wine, glasses, but no more plates?

In any case, their story is very vague.

"

This Sunday, dozens of restaurateurs, owners of bars and nightclubs and representatives of the hotel and catering sector gathered in front of the Hôtel des Invalides to protest against the tightening of health measures affecting their establishments.

"We serve as scapegoats," loose Marcel Benezet who has feared for several months for the economic health of the sector.

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Coronavirus: Bars will close at 10 p.m. in Paris from Monday

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