Houston – Two mainstays in Eado are saying goodbye after falling victim to the coronavirus. After 13 years in business, both Lucky’s Pub and Lucky’s Lodge are shutting down at 2 a.m. Saturday. The bar’s owners were unable to work things out with the landlords.
"We couldn't come to an agreement for a sustainable lease that would allow us to operate and stay," said spokesman Travis Adair.
But as loyal regulars said goodbye, they joined the type of gathering Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo just said she did not want to see.
"Avoid gatherings," Hidalgo said. "Don't go to bars, clubs where you could be exposed to large groups."
Hidalgo gave that suggestion Thursday when announcing the county’s new COVID-19 threat level system. However, with bars now being allowed to operate at 50% of maximum occupancy in phase 3 of the governor’s reopening plan, it’s difficult to keep customers away.
“At some point, it’s your sanity too,” said customer Jennifer Reister. “Getting to see the people you love and not being cooped up in a whole all day.”
But when we asked, every customer we spoke to said they themselves didn’t feel totally safe being out. At the same time, they also said they supported social distancing techniques and we did see some of that Friday night. It seems a lot of people are having trouble finding the proper balance.
“I just know it’s going to be hard to do what they’re asking to do and keep our economic system afloat,” Adair said.
Harris County currently is in a level 2 in that threat level system. That means the threat is labeled as significant and the county asks people to minimize all contacts.