Woodchips BBQ in Lapeer Will Stay Open For Indoor Dining

In an effort to help his employees continue to make money, Patrick Hingst, owner of Woodchips Barbecue in Lapeer, is choosing to stay open for indoor dining.

This decision is a result of the recent guidelines put into place by Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. As of now, every Michigan restaurant is supposed to be closed for indoor dining. According to Hingst, he could not do that. If he did close, he would be forced to lay off twenty employees.

NBC 25 spoke with Patrick Hangst, and he had this to say in regards to his decision,

"I've got single moms here, I've got people with mortgages to pay, bills that are due, and we can brand this as a pause but those things don't pause, so at the end of the day we had to figure out what we can do to take care of our team.''

Hingst is also making it clear that indoor dining capacity is limited, tables will be spread out six feet apart, and he is putting in partitions. All patrons will also have their temperatures checked at the door. Woodchips Barbecue is also offering half off meals to essential workers. Check out the video below for information on that, and more.

So what do you think? Are you comfortable going out to eat? I know everyone will have an opinion on this, I look forward to hearing yours.