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Popular Bowling Green Restaurant Shuts Down During Indoor Dining Restrictions

facebook/Teresa's Restaurant

As COVID-19 surges across Kentucky, new statewide restrictions prohibiting indoor dining for bars and restaurants go into effect Nov. 20 at 5 p.m. and last through Dec. 13.

One local business impacted by the new restrictions is Teresa's Restaurant, a Bowling Green eatery known for home cooking.

The restrictions during the pandemic have caused financial strain for the popular restaurant and the newest rule that prohibits indoor dining is the last straw, at least until Dec. 13. 

Owner Heather McGuffey said the restaurant has no outdoor dining and a previous attempt at take-out meals during an earlier restriction on indoor dining didn't work out.  So she decided to close Teresa’s when the latest rules go into effect.

McGuffey said she’s worried about her 20 employees.

“I’m hoping that they can draw unemployment. From what I hear, the government is not going to do much to help this go-round," said McGuffey. "So we have told our employees we will try to do anything we can keep them going and up. Anything we can do for these next three weeks, and pray to God this is going to be over in three weeks, and we can all get back to life.”

McGuffey has owned Teresa’s Restaurant since 2014 and considered all the possibilities to keep serving customers during the pandemic, but this time, with the new restrictions, she's just going to try a different option and temporarily shut down.

“It’s all kinds of emotions you know. You’re mad. You’re sad. You’re upset. You’re scared," said McGuffey. "But I’m just gonna try not to let it get me too upset or make me too mad. I’m just going to turn it over to God and hope that he has a way to see us through it.”

The temporary shutdown of Teresa’s means there will be no Thanksgiving dinner next week, when the restaurant usually serves between 300 and 400 free  meals. McGuffey said they considered trying to provide Thanksgiving meals with take-out only, but with so many people who would be waiting in line, it just didn't seem like a workable option. 

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