A RESTAURANT owner has said it was a moral decision to temporarily close due to the coronavirus.

The Mediterranean takeaway restaurant Bare Grillz closed its doors on Monday, March 23.

Mr Gabriel said he decided to temporarily shut the takeaway eatery because it was the ‘moral thing to do.’

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He added: “No one has told me to close. But Boris Johnson told everyone to stay at home.

“We could have still opened as a takeaway or delivery service, but the safety of our staff and customers is the first and foremost.

“We want to keep our staff safe. I told them we would still pay them, but they need to self-isolate at home.”

He added: “I think any kind of contact is able to contract this virus. There’s no way to get around it.

“Contact is contact, and for that reason I thought it was best to completely close.

“As the mood around the city started to change, we had to make a conscious decision.

“It was tough on Saturday when we were packing away.

“It’s not like World War Two. It’s not that bad – we have had harder times.

“I want this finished and passed as quick as possible.”

Mr Gabriel said the staff from the Worcester restaurant, in Brindley Road, had planned on distributing the last food and drink stock to hospital staff at Worcestershire Royal Hospital following the closure.

However, after the government’s announcement Monday evening telling the public to self-isolate this meant the plan could not go ahead.

Mr Gabriel said: “We closed our doors on Monday thinking we would be cooking a batch of food the following day to be delivered to the hospital.

“We were going to cook up a load of food and put them in boxes to take up. We will still do this after Boris has loosened the reins.

“We have got loads of fresh vegetables that we were going to use up.”

He added: “For now, we are doing what we have been told – we are self-isolating and only leaving the house if it’s absolutely necessary.

“I was in between a rock and a hard place. When they loosen the reins we will help.”

Mr Gabriel said he was going to fill around 40 to 50 boxes of food which were going to be delivered to the staff working in the intensive care unit.