Arizona to Again Shut Down Bars — but Not Restaurants — Due to Rising Coronavirus Cases

The state follows Texas, Florida, and parts of California in trying to curb the spread of coronavirus

Arizona has joined the ranks of states and counties that have reversed guidance on business openings in light of steep rises in COVID-19 cases. Last week Texas, Florida and parts of Idaho ordered bars to close to in-person service, followed by parts of California and Pennsylvania. Now, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey has ordered that bars, as well as gyms, movie theaters, and water parks, shutter for at least 30 days.

At the end of April, Ducey promised a carefully planned reopening, saying, “It would be irresponsible for me to make decisions to reopen with a chance that I would have to come back because we didn’t have the proper guidance or data and ask people to do this again.” Bars, nightclubs and restaurants in Arizona were allowed to open in mid-May, immediately allowing indoor dining. As data shows, Arizona began reporting a quick rise in COVID-19 cases at the beginning of June. On June 28, there were 3,809 new cases, a record for the state. “Our expectation is that our numbers next week will be worse,” said Ducey. Tentatively, bars will be able to re-open on July 27, though Ducey says that will depend on the numbers. As of now, restaurants are allowed to continue indoor service.

And in other news...

• Brittany Littleton, an influencer and co-owner of LA vegan restaurant Sugar Taco, refuses to give a dog back to the unhoused man that it was stolen from. [Jezebel]
• Dos Equis has made a six-foot long cooler to help you social distance. [Forbes]
• Uber makes an offer to buy Postmates for about $2.6 billion. [NYTimes]
• Descendants of Anna Short Harrington, whose image inspired the Aunt Jemima logo, are calling for reparations. In 2015, a judge dismissed their lawsuit against Quaker Oats for failing to pay royalties to the family. [The Daily Beast]
• Chef Tunde Wey, who recently called for John T. Edge of the Southern Foodways Alliance to step down, has responded to a piece in the New York Times, calling it “white face-saving masquerading as objectivity.” [Instagram]
• Shaq and Papa John’s are making a pizza. [Penn Live]
• We’re back to studies that say alcohol is good for you. [Insider]
• The Infatuation is removing ratings from its restaurant lists. [The Infatuation]
• What “fajita wife” guy reveals about how much we miss restaurants. [Mel Magazine]
• Kanye West is so proud of how much money Kim Kardashian has hoarded, in the midst of a global pandemic and a national reckoning with racism and inequality, that he took a bunch of vegetables from their kitchen bowl and put them on the driveway and took a photo:

• All AM Intel Coverage [E]