Jordan Beck | Daily Press Becky Moody, owner and general manager of Escanaba brewpub Hereford & Hops, gets ready to re-open the brewpub in a recent photo. Hereford & Hops re-opened to dine-in customers on the afternoon of Friday, May 22.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The coronavirus pandemic has impacted area businesses in numerous ways. Over the coming weeks, the Daily Press will take a look at how some area businesses are coping with the changes and challenges we are all facing. The series will run on a regular basis in the Daily Press.

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ESCANABA — Local brewpub Hereford & Hops re-opened to dine-in customers recently. According to owner and general manager Becky Moody, the business is taking a number of precautions to keep its customers and employees safe.

Hereford & Hops closed to the public on Monday, March 16 — the day Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered all restaurants and bars in Michigan to close to dine-in customers. During the early stages of the shutdown, Hereford & Hops also stopped selling food for takeout.

“We had to throw away all of our produce and all of our prepped material,” Moody said.

Fortunately, the brewpub was able to stop a food delivery that had been scheduled for the day the order went into effect.

Despite this, Hereford & Hops technically did not shut down at any point.

“We never stopped selling beer for takeout,” Moody said.

On May 1, Hereford & Hops started offering takeout food once again with a limited menu. Moody said people in the community were eager to order food from the brewpub at the time.

“We really appreciate the support that everybody has given us,” she said.

While it was closed to dine-in business, Hereford & Hops went through a deep cleaning. Some improvements were also made to the restaurant, including an ongoing renovation of the women’s bathroom.

“It is one way that I could keep some people employed, especially the people who couldn’t get unemployment,” Moody said of this work.

Hereford & Hops re-opened to dine-in customers on the afternoon of Friday, May 22. This was done in compliance with an announcement by Gov. Whitmer allowing restaurants, bars and retail businesses in the Upper Peninsula and parts of the Lower Peninsula to re-open on that day.

“We’re grateful that we can re-open, and we’re confident that we can keep our guests and staff safe,” Moody said.

Moody said a number of changes have been made at Hereford & Hops in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

“It’s going to look different, and it’s going to be different,” she said.

Under Whitmer’s announcement, bars and restaurants were required to limit capacity to 50 percent. Moody noted Hereford & Hops has still been able to provide seating for 113 people at a time while complying with this requirement.

“I don’t think that’s going to be a problem for us,” she said.

Front-of-house employees at the brewpub have been wearing gloves and masks. Servers are not handling money, credit cards or used dishes. Disposable menus and napkins are being used and tables, chairs, booths and commonly-touched surfaces are being cleaned and sanitized on a regular basis, among other safety precautions.

As part of its re-opening, Hereford & Hops has re-introduced some of its standard offerings, including “The Other Grill,” a popular Mongolian-style barbecue grill where diners can create their own stir-fries and fajitas.

“I think we have a way that we can do it and still keep everyone safe,” Moody said.

Under the Other Grill’s new system, customers tell a gloved, masked attendant what ingredients they would like in their order. The attendant, who is separated from customers by a sneeze guard, puts these ingredients in a bowl with tongs. Only one customer at a time is allowed to go through this process.

Moody advised people planning to eat at Hereford & Hops in the near future to call ahead if possible.

“Because of social distancing, we would appreciate reservations,” she said.

She also said she is glad her brewpub is fully back in business.

“Everybody here is really excited about seeing our regular guests again,” Moody said.