Dining dummies help cafe-goers keep a fashionable distance

Reuters Videos
Updated

Mannequins take up tables

to coax back restaurant customers

and help out with social distancing

Location: Vilnius, Lithuania

Restaurant owner Bernie ter Braak

enlisted local fashion designers and stores

to display their products on the models

and help his restaurant look busier

(SOUNDBITE) (English) 47-YEAR-OLD RESTAURANT OWNER, BERNIE TER BRAAK, SAYING:"Yesterday, when we had already all the mannequins sitting in their places, at once it felt like a full restaurant, it gave much much better vibe in the restaurant at once. So that was the main goal of the project, and yesterday evening we felt already that, hey, it's working."

Other cafes and restaurants in the city

have also joined in with the scheme

to give Vilnius' social scene a boost

(SOUNDBITE) (English) 39-YEAR-OLD CUSTOMER, ODETA PLAKIENE, SAYING:

"I think it is (a good idea) because then you are for sure, where you can sit and where you can't. On the other hand, it gives quite a good mood. Really, we came up with smiles on our faces."