It's probably not a good time to open or reconfigure your business, with the announcement this lunchtime that pubs, cafés & restaurants will from Friday December 4th have to shut by 6 p.m.and there's a ban from serving any alcohol (except for off sales).
Himalaya has opened. The two premises on either side are now shut, though.
After a considerable period of closure and refurbishment, the Himalaya Indian restaurant opened at the weekend at the Old Picturehouse. It was in 2008 that it first opened as a restaurant & bar, having previously been a dance studio and before that Warren's Happy Shopper. After the restaurant shut, after a period of fallow, it became an antiques dealer.
The only saving grace for the Himalaya is that it offers takeaways and these may continue under the Welsh government's rules.
Then, opening from November 12th, was the mid-range food offering at the Castle Hotel. This was promised for the spring, as part of the new owner's plans for the place. Coronavirus put paid to that and both the local health protection zone and the fire-break lockdown delayed matters. Oridnarily, opening before Christmas would be a Good Thing.
The decision to close pubs is another blow to the hospitality industry. It wipes out the lucrative pre-Christmas market and that probably between Christmas and New Year. New Year itself must surely be in doubt. Thereafter, January & February are lean, to say the least.
Pubs in Rhuthun/Ruthin are small businesses and they are not especially resilient. They argue that they have fully complied with Welsh government guidelines and rules. The only exception was the Boar's Head, which was served an improvement notice and we also know that there remain some concerns, even now. Yet, after only three weeks after lockdown comes this new blow.
Meanwhile, we need to remember just why we're doing this. Welsh ministers believe the measures will prevent between 1,000 and 1,700 deaths. One additional reason will be the trade off between keeping schools open and hospitality shut; and a similar choice between people gathering in small groups at home or bigger ones in pubs.
And, in Rhuthun more so than in any part of Denbighshire, the virus is still on the march.
All areas of Denbighshire have seen a reduction in the number of cases (one staying the same), save Rhuthun, which has gone the other way with a vengeance. The rise in Rhuthun is equivalent in percentage terms to the fall in beleaguered Llangollen.
A little birdie tells me that, early last week, the Welsh government was seriously considering closing all shops bar supermarkets and even restricting supermarket opening. That was deemed to be a step too far. Whatever side you're on in this debate (health before the economy or vice versa) the Welsh cabinet is meeting for hours and virtually every day, including weekends. A lockdown after Christmas remains on the cards.