Firehouse Deli and other restaurants in Fairfield opened their outdoor dinning areas today to kick off phase one of the coronavirus reopening plan in Connecticut.

The deli is typically packed during lunch time, but today the outdoor dinning area saw only a few customers.

Some customers tell News 12 they're a little skittish about dining outside during the pandemic so they're sticking with to-go orders for now.

Firehouse Deli says customers who wish to sit outside will have to first place their order over the phone, then pick up their meal at a window.

Per state protocol, tables are 6 feet apart from one another, and there can only be up to five people per table.

"We're just very happy to get out and be a part of everything again. It's a good step in the right direction, as long as everyone's a bit careful. And it seems like everyone is respecting each other's safety zones," customer Michelle Fontana says.

Across town, Chip's Family Restaurant applied for a special permit so they could use some of the parking lot to accommodate outdoor dining, Chip's co-owner Adam Bajko says.

"We're going to transition to this. We may be calling it the Chip's Pancake Garden, we'll see what happens. Orange and Fairfield are the first two that are going to be operational. If this takes off, we'll be operating the other three restaurants hopefully in the next week or two," Bajko says.

According to state guidelines, all customers must wear protective face masks when dining outside, but may remove them when eating and drinking.
Gov. Ned Lamont says businesses can refuse service to customers who don't wear masks.