NORTH CAROLINA — Bar owners across North Carolina have been waiting nearly seven months to reopen. On October 2nd, the day finally came, but with many restrictions as the state moved into Phase 3.

The owner of Hattie’s Tap & Tavern in Charlotte says she recently bought walkie talkies to make sure her bar doesn’t go over 30 percent capacity. She said this way the worker at the door can talk with other workers about capacity.

“We're only going to allow six people to be inside the building at all times,” Hattie’s Tap & Tavern Owner Jackie DeLoach says. “Outside, we can have about 30 people.”

Those allowed inside can order a drink, but can only sit outside. DeLoach says the building walkway is now set up to be one-directional so people don’t go in and out of the same door.

“You can’t walk in the door unless you are wearing a face mask,” Deloach says. “We encourage you to try and not go inside unless you need to.”

However, the limited capacity is really tough for some bars. 

In Fayetteville, the owner of On-After Pub and Grub says he built an outdoor space just for COVID-19, but he can’t have many people there.

“Based on the square footage, according to the governor, this only holds two people,” On-After Pub & Grub Owner Joseph Newberry says. “We are only allowed two people for this amount of space.”

He’s still not sure if he will reopen because of the limitation.

“It doesn’t help at all,” Newberry says. “It doesn’t make sense that some places are allowed to be open and some aren’t.”

Even for bars that do have more outdoor space, DeLoach says the revenue margins are going to be tight.

“I have to hire more staff to make sure that we are taking care of the people coming in and out,” DeLoach says. “But I also have to pay that staff, and at 30 percent capacity, I am barely making anything at that point.”