DENVER — The city of Denver on Tuesday approved the first communal dining area on Glenarm Patio on the 16th Street Mall.
Restaurants participating in the communal dining area include Lime, Maggiano’s Little Italy, 5280 Burger and Hard Rock Café, the city's excise and licenses department said.
Communal dining allows multiple food establishments to share a common outdoor dining area, which permits restaurants in these areas to expand their serving capacity areas to increase profit and facilitate safe dining during the pandemic, the city said. However, customers cannot order a drink or food from different restaurants at the same table.
The communal dining area is part of the city's effort to allow restaurants to extend seating into sidewalks, streets and parking lots as the city works to find ways to allow eateries to open while still combating the spread of COVID-19 and complying with physical distancing requirements.
As part of the program, Larimer Street between 14th and 15th streets in Larimer Square and Glenarm Place between 15th and 17th streets in the Denver Pavilions will both close and restaurants in those areas will be able to expand outdoor dining into those streets.
In total, 85 Denver restaurants have been approved to temporarily expand their patios either into roads, sidewalks or parking lots. Those who are interested can apply by clicking here.
Any restaurants interested in communal dining can send an email to tempexpand@denvergov.org.
As part of Denver’s temporary outdoor expansion for restaurants and bars, the city said:
- 227 applicants have submitted complete applications
- 146 have been approved to operate
- 65% of applicants that have submitted all required materials have been approved to operate
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