Honolulu restaurants, bars still being cited for violations of COVID-19 rules
Aug. 7—As Hawaii COVID-19 contraction cases continue to spike, Honolulu restaurants and bars are still running afoul of city virus mitigation rules.
The Honolulu Liquor Commission has issued 89 violation notices to licensed establishments since the beginning of this year for violating emergency orders governing business operations amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to the city.
One recent notice went to Chart House Waikiki, which was forced to close for 24 hours after Liquor Commission investigators discovered Wednesday that the restaurant in the Ilikai Marina tower wasn't collecting customer contact information as required.
City emergency orders pertaining to restaurants and bars require customers to sign in so they can be reached for potential COVID-19 contact tracing efforts. Emergency order rules also regulate customer group sizes, spacing between customers, surface sanitizing, operating hours, staff screening and other things.
According to Liquor Commission meeting documents, scheduled adjudication hearings in July included cases of COVID-19 emergency order violations earlier this year involving Harbor Pub, Siam Paradise Restaurant and Sports Pub, Aqua Lounge, Halona Lounge, Platinum Lounge, Club Waterfall, Club Sundance, Blind Ox, Club Business, Hanks Cafe Honolulu, Club Bonita and Sky Lounge.
A tally of how many forced 24-hour closures stemmed from violations this year was not available Friday from the commission.
The 24-hour closures enforced by police or the Liquor Commission are an authorized penalty to compel compliance and provide time to train staff for protecting public health.
Brandi Higa, a spokeswoman for Mayor Rick Blangiardi, said that in addition to the 89 violation notices, the Liquor Commission has issued about 50 written warnings so far this year to licensed establishments for violating the mayor's emergency orders.
Much of the rising number of COVID-19 infections in the state has been attributed to social and recreational gatherings, including local volleyball teams traveling to mainland tournaments in indoor arenas with thousands of attendees not required to wear masks or socially distance.
The state Department of Health reported 30 cases stemming from two tournaments in Las Vegas and Kansas City, Mo., in a cluster report published Thursday covering case investigation work during the prior two weeks.
In the same report, 35 cases were connected with four clusters originating in or linked to local restaurants. For bars and nightclubs, there was one cluster involving five cases.
Brooks Baehr, a Health Department spokesman, said he hasn't been to a restaurant in 18 months.
In August 2020 the Liquor Commission closed 10 liquor-serving establishments on one day in its first major enforcement effort after then-Mayor Kirk Caldwell elevated COVID-19 rules pertaining to restaurants and bars.
The 10 establishments forced to close for 24 hours were Aloha Beer Co., Waikiki Brewing Co., Di's Karaoke, Hibiscus Club, 8 Fat Fat 8, Aqua Lounge, Club Blue Star, Club Wave, Emerald City and Club Bonita.
City officials at the time pledged that enforcement would be "ongoing and continuous."
