Beverly Hills officials last week tried to thwart plans for a “clandestine” New Year’s Eve dinner amid an increase in coronavirus in one of the city’s venerable restaurants, reminding management of the ban on eating in Los Angeles County.
Authorities were responding to an invitation sent to some residents of the La Scala area, the fine Italian restaurant on North Canon Drive in Beverly Hills, which seemed to signal plans for a secret dinner that would violate restrictions imposed by public health experts. The invitations were placed inside the restaurant’s food bags.
“Welcome back to the Prohibition of the 1920s,” said the message, in formal cursive script. “We are currently accepting reservations for New Year’s Eve dinner. Inside.”
The message continued: “Be discreet, but tell all your friends”.
Keith Sterling, a spokesman for the city of Beverly Hills, told The Times by email that city officials contacted La Scala on Christmas Eve about the event to remind their administration of the restrictions on the county order.
“We understand that this is an incredibly difficult time for all of our businesses,” says the statement, “however, the County Order currently prohibits dining indoors and outdoors, including in the city of Beverly Hills.”
The invitation, which was widely shared on Twitter, generating dozens of negative comments, had already caused a reaction from the Beverly Hills Police Department.
The Department posted that their employees responsible for applying the code were aware of and “handling the matter”.
Management in La Scala, a sophisticated restaurant known for its chopped salad and famous customers, could not be reached immediately for comment. A message on the restaurant’s website said it was closed for Christmas and New Year.
The potential dinner event is the latest conflict between public health officials and local restaurants, who were frustrated by last month’s decision to reinstate the ban on dining as California and Los Angeles County experienced a new peak in COVID-19 cases.
The restrictions had already led some of the 88 cities in the county to vent about the possibility of creating their own health departments in an effort to write their own rules.
Beverly Hills City Council earlier this month adopted a resolution against the county ban, citing the “detrimental impact on local businesses” and a “lack of scientific evidence”.
In September, La Scala posted an image on Instagram complaining to Beverly Hills Mayor Lester Friedman, saying, “Hey … you’re hurting our restaurants!”