Beer garden-goers stick to rules – Steve Cardownie

On Monday I took the opportunity to re-acquaint myself with an old friend of mine – draught cider – when I visited Philly’s at the Gyle. Arriving just after noon, the garden was sparsely populated although we were assured that it would soon fill up given the number of reservations that had been made.

And so it did with a number of families turning up to enjoy the food and draught beers, enjoying the sunshine when it periodically poked through the clouds. All in all, it was a pleasant afternoon and Ryan and his team ensured that everybody was looked after.

Strict social distancing was the order of the day but as the tables were adequately spaced out that did not present a problem and there was no need to worry that a visit to the beer garden could present a health hazard. There were still a few tables available throughout the afternoon and the prospect of a jam-packed beer garden, as was the experience in similar venues closer to the city centre, never materialised.

So the long-awaited partial relaxation of the lockdown measures was warmly welcomed and I did not witness any flagrant disregard for the new rules and weather permitting, it looks like beer gardens will continue to enjoy a healthy number of people who are keen to get back to ‘normal’ at the earliest opportunity.

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