HOUSTON, Texas — In less than a week, Texas bars will finally be approved to open, but only some. Gov. Greg Abbott is leaving the decision in county judges' hands.
After months of serving beer to-go, bartenders Staci and JoJo can finally let customers inside.
“It's rough. I mean every week, you might have a quarter of what your tips would be if you were open," Staci Hoyle said.
Bars like Salty’s LLC in Montgomery County officially open Wednesday.
“You’re going to make me cry now. It’s just amazing," JoJo Dingman said. "We’ll be able to actually have a conversation with our customers and each other.”
Abbott says if a county judge okays it, bars can open at 50%. Waller and Galveston counties have also opted in.
Kat’s Place in La Marque was applying for a food and beverage license when this announcement came, something they still plan to keep.
“I don’t know exactly how to put it in words, but it is going to be great," temporary Manager Frank Patterson said. “We don’t know what the COVID is going to do. We don’t know what the governor may do in a pandemic situation.”
But for owners on the other side of the decision, like those in Harris County, they’re staying closed.
“It’s hard when you’ve got people that say well ill just drive 15 miles down the road and say, 'I can go to a bar, but I can't go here,'" Partner Anthony Shorrosh said.
And that includes The Shiloh Club.
“It’s almost pick and choose. It’s what do you want to open today? What do you want to close? And I don’t understand it," Shorrosh said.