Restaurant owner defends his defiance of COVID-19 restrictions ahead of judge’s ruling

(The Center Square) – A restaurant owner and Iraq war veteran is defending his defiance of statewide COVID-19 restrictions enacted by Gov. Ralph Northam and the Health Codes Board ahead of a judicial ruling expected at the end of the week.

Matthew Strickland, the owner of Gourmeltz in Fredericksburg, is openly defying government mandates that require the business to enforce mask wearing and prohibit the business from seating people at the bar. A judge is expected to rule Friday on a lawsuit filed by the state to shut down the business. The restaurant’s food license has been suspended, but continues to operate.

“I am not following the rules in short because they are arbitrary, make no sense and infringe on my customer’s and my constitutional rights,” Strickland told The Center Square. “…I’ve spent most of my adult life fighting for this country in Iraq and Afghanistan. I have a lot of pride for this country, and I won’t let incompetent leaders ruin it. I’m only one man, but I promise that I will never stop standing up for what’s right, and they will get all of the fight I have in me.”

Unlike most business establishments in Virginia, Strickland allows staff and employees to decide for themselves whether they wear a face covering. He said he doubts the effectiveness of facemask mandates in part because he knows people who wear facemasks everywhere they go and have still contracted COVID-19. If a person wants to wear a mask, they’re permitted to do so, he said, but that individuals should be free to make that choice.

Strickland said he does not believe the prohibition on bar seating is effective, either. If a patron can remove a mask while sitting at a table, he said it is no different if a patron is sitting at a bar. After the restaurant was visited by a health inspector, Strickland claimed the inspector did not convince him that bar seating is any more dangerous than table seating, but the inspector conveyed that it is the governor’s order.

“I told him that that answer is not good enough for me, and I won’t be ruled by a dictator,” Strickland said. “He said if I didn’t comply they would suspend my health department license. I told him to do what he’s gotta do, and I’ll do what I gotta do.

The state attorney general’s office, which is leading the lawsuit against Gourmeltz, did not respond to a request for comment.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses, particularly restaurants and bars, have suffered substantial financial losses from fewer people dining out and from statewide restrictions. Although Northam scaled back some of the regulations, there is still a mask mandate, a bar-seating prohibition, a midnight curfew on alcohol sales and social distancing requirements between tables.

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