Bee Brothers Resumes Indoor Dining Friday With Limited Capacity

ROMEOVILLE, IL — As the state moves to Phase 4 of the governor's Restore Illinois plan, restaurants are opening their doors for indoor dining. With a wide base of customers in Romeoville and Bolingbrook, Bee Brothers announces Thursday that it is also now going to serve in the dining room.

"It feels amazing and almost surreal," said co-owner Andy Theodorou. "We have been closed since the state mandated us to shut down almost 15 weeks ago."

To prepare for indoor dining, he said the eatery is adhering to the Illinois Department of Commerce guidelines for bars and restaurants, which states that indoor dining can reopen with groups of 10 or less, with tables spaced 6 feet apart in seated areas and with standing areas at no more than 25 percent of capacity.

With that in mind, Bee Brothers has reduced seating capacity by 50 percent and rearranged the furniture to allow distancing between seating areas, Theodorou said.

"At the beginning of every shift, employees are assisted by management in an employee screening form where temperatures are taken along with a battery of health related questions," he said. "Sanitizing of all surfaces is performed between guests from tabletops and menus, to salt shakers and condiment bottles — it is all wiped down with a virucide solution.

He said the business faced "a mountain of challenges due to the pandemic." Priding itself on a formidable team that has the ability to swiftly adapt to changes, Bee Brothers did not lay off anyone during the COVID-19 outbreak.

"They have become family to us and it was just something we did not even consider," Theodorou said. "We were happy to accommodate changing schedules due to school closures and even help with providing food staples to employees with children at home, as retailers' supplies dwindled in the very beginning. We still operated pickup and delivery services as usual."

Once the state moved to Phase 3 on May 29 and outdoor seating was allowed, the restaurant quickly improvised to allow guests who were looking forward to "dining with us again," he said.

"We did not have provisions for outdoor dining at the time. It was always an idea we had planned to implement in the near future, so it worked out perfectly by launching us in that direction," he said. "The village was gracious enough to fast track any permits needed in order to assist local businesses to thrive during these difficult times."

So far it has received overwhelming positive feedback from the guests and Theodorou said he hopes "as we reopen indoors are that our guests will rest assured they are in good hands."

"I perform ongoing training and am extremely communicative to our staff, almost constantly," he said. "I hope our guests feel at ease in knowing we are a small, local, family owned and operated business that takes great pride in offering value and service."

Bee Brothers has modified its business hours to 7:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. daily. Theodorou said he is "deeply humbled and moved by the outpouring of support and genuine concern I have experienced these past few months."

"Ours is an amazing community that truly lifts each other up in difficult times. I am a changed person on the other end of this pandemic," he said. "The restaurant industry has been severely affected by the pandemic, and many are at the point of collapse. Now is the time to show them support and help them thrive again. Just like our guests have done. They are happy to venture out and 'Bee' with us."

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