Cabin Fever Overcomes Smoky Air, Virus Concerns for Intrepid East Bay Diners
PLEASANTON (KPIX) -- After several days with many businesses closed, people were back outin downtown Walnut Creek Saturday but traffic was still down at Main Street Kitchen.
"We take what we can but this is one-third of what we normally do," said Main Street owner Arash Ghasemi. "So this is not so great."
"The air quality the last couple days was pretty bad," Kathy Hamilton said in downtown Livermore. "It was pretty nasty. It was in the red so I don't know what it is today but we've got a breeze."
Some of the people out dining Saturday said they thought conditions had improved a little.
"The sun has come out and we got a little heat now," Hamilton said. "It was actually pretty cold the past couple days cause there was no sun."
There were also people who were just ready to get out of the house.
"Some people are kind of tired of being stuck at home but it's not the normal amount of people," said Juan Alcaraz, owner of French Dips in Livermore. "There's a lot of other people staying home."
Alcaraz said the past two weeks have been added hardship on top of the pandemic.
"We want 2020 to be gone because this is one after another," Alcaraz said. "First heat then the ash, I don't even know what's coming next."
Each of the business owners we spoke with Saturday and in San Francisco Friday, mentioned another point, summed up by Arash Ghasemi.
"I watch the news and I see people in the middle of the flames and fire," he said. "So you know, I'm still alive, my family is healthy so we just try to think positive and keep it going."
