Why Sola Pasta Bar’s Simone Tiligna Is Embracing NYC’s Return to Indoor Dining | Eater NY

"We opened Sola Pasta Bar in 2017 after I moved from Milan, with a mission to serve authentic, high-quality Italian pasta to New Yorkers, and we brought that vision to life with fresh pasta, good music, and positive energy. When indoor dining was announced to return at 25 percent capacity in mid-February, reservation requests flooded in and our books filled for Valentine’s Day; reopening indoors at even 25 percent makes a tangible difference to daily sales and helps reach customers reluctant to eat outdoors. Over the past year we adapted constantly — closing for dining, launching takeout and delivery, opening outdoor dining, and investing heavily in our corner terraces and individual heated cottages that are secluded and feature adjustable heaters, Sonos speakers, firefly lamps, and sweeping yellow-and-white rose installations designed to feel like a romantic evening in Capri. With our team reduced from about 21 to 14, we’ve implemented strict safety protocols — daily employee temperature checks, twice-daily sanitation, cleaning the kitchen and bathroom every two hours, plexiglass and six-foot spacing between tables — and after nearly a year no one on our team has tested positive for COVID-19; we will also take customers’ temperatures and record information for contact tracing when we open for indoor dining. We’re grateful to provide guests a slice of hope and welcome indoor dining as both a lifeline for our business and a step toward normalcy." - Simone Tiligna