Long Island tries to steal restaurant business from NYC

Restaurants on Long Island are open for indoor dining and Nassau County Executive Laura Curran wants to make sure you know it. She started a campaign to draw in New York City residents, who are still only able to dine alfresco.

“Since dining began, we’ve seen hospitalization rates go down, infection rates go down, infection rate has been about 1% for many weeks now” said Curran.

Near the Cross Island Parkway on Jericho Turnpike, restaurants like The Halal Brothers on the north side of the street are considered to be in Queens, while restaurants like The Borderline on the south side of the street are considered to be on Long Island. Over on Northern Boulevard in Queens, Il Bacco restaurant can’t open for indoor dining, but its neighbors just down the road in Great Neck have been hosting patrons indoors for two months now.  

At his daily briefing, Mayor Bill de Blasio made it clear that he believes it’s not a risk worth taking just yet.

“A number of states moved ahead with indoor dining and found that it contributed to their either ongoing problem or resurgence. So, unfortunately what we see around the country, what we see around the world is there's a direct connection,” said de Blasio.

The says sometime this month the city will have a clear answer about indoor dining, whether it be good news or bad news for the industry. He says the city and state are working together now to make that final decision.

Get breaking news alerts in the FOX5NY News app. It is FREE! Download for iOS or Android