NEW ORLEANS– If you are planning on ringing in 2021 at midnight at your favorite bar or restaurant… think again. The City of New Orleans is mandating that all bars and restaurants close at 11 p.m. on New Year’s Eve, just like on other nights because these are the COVID-19 restrictions that are in place.
“Last Call” will be called earlier this year on New Year’s Eve. To follow the rules, at Lucy’s Retired Surfers Bar and Restaurant, they decided to bump up their champagne toast and celebration an hour, when the clock strikes 11 p.m.
“We are a surfers bar, so we decided to celebrate at 11 with our East Coast surfers,” Shelley Rudolph, General Manager of Lucy’s said.
Lucy’s originated in New York City, so they will celebrate New Year’s when New York does.
“We are doing a New York State of Mind event upstairs in our private room, free of charge. We will have lots of black linen and twinkly lights for the celebration,” she said.
Rudolph said that fun can still be had in a safe way, no matter the hour.
“We pride ourselves that we are following all the regulations to keep everyone safe. I’m hoping we will have just as much fun at 11 as we did at midnight,” she said.
And when “Last Call” is called for the last time in 2020, they are betting most folks are just happy that 2020’s coming to an end.
“We’ll also be doing a 2020 eraser, which is a mind eraser shot,” Rudolph said.