Compared to what I keep hearing, seeing, and reading from around the world, my impression is that Mexico might be the most laid-back place when it comes to Covid measures. (Of course, I haven't been to Turkmenistan!) People here tend to do what suits them best, whether that means wearing masks on their faces, their chins, or elbows, whether they stay home or go out, and of course whatever's best for business always tops everything else.
Talking about what's best for business, there is a general tendency that can be observed across the board, from the cheapest eateries to the fanciest restaurants: the terracization of parking lanes! It makes perfect sense: being faced with reduced customer space (due to social distancing measures), many gastronomical businesses moved their tables onto the sidewalk. From there it was just one step to extend their dining area into the adjacent parking lanes. And what started out as a few tables and chairs, has soon evolved into a walled terrace, complete with plants and parasols. In between, the sidewalk becomes a sort-of pedestrian tunnel, where you passer-bys get to mingle with diners and wait staff.
And it's not just the high-end restaurants that do this. Take a look at the neighborhood Sushi joint I discussed in my mural post. They are also quite good at walling off their section of the parking lane they conquered. Interestingly, this way they quadrupled their dining area, as there would barely be enough space to fit two tables inside the restaurant, even under pre-covid conditions.
This beautiful deck is located outside a pizzeria in my street. The pizza place is sorta fancy, located in a crude-looking brick building. The seeming dilapidation only adds to the charm of the pizzeria (and of course to the price of the pizzas). But this occupied area in front of the establishment invites one to sit down and relax with a glass of Chianti, even if you're not hungry.
What the big restaurants can do, the little ones are even better at! This here is a great example of how a hole-in-the-wall eatery is following the same tendency to maximize their customer space. It may not look like much, but you can bet your bottom buck that the proprietors guard this bit of sidewalk and parking lane with a hawk's eye. So even though it may seem easy to push those tables out of the way, reasonable motorists will keep looking elsewhere to park.
Or take this café for example! At first they started out just like the eatery above. Then they got themselves a parasol and some plants. As you can tell, the whole shop is tiny (only the yellow section). But by following the pattern of occupation, they managed to carve out an additional terrace on the street, which by now nobody is going to take away that easily.
The Direction We Are Heading
So what can we expect from this trend for the future? Are restaurants going to reduce these conquered areas once the Covid is declared finished? Or IS Covid ever going to be finished? And in that case, are these newly occupied terraces going to become permanent? At this point it's anyone's best guess. Personally, I wouldn't mind, as I don't drive, and I generally prefer shady sitting areas with plants to motorist parking. But since parking has never been easy in this city (or anywhere for that matter), you can imagine how motorists feel about these new terraces! At least for now it seems like they are here to stay. Give it to the Mexicans to take advantage of a global pandemic to find ingenious solutions for problems that had been .