SAN DIEGO — It has been 24-hours into the state's stay-at-home order, and the streets of San Diego were mostly bare with few people out picking up food Friday.
“I’ve never seen anything like this in my life,” said Luciano Cibello.
Cibello spoke on the phone through his restaurant's glass window, but his plight could be felt even through that protective barrier.
“It’s been a tough time not to interact with my guests like I used to. I miss that,” he said.
No one's eating inside "The Red Door.” But the tables are still set.
“I believe it gives a sense of comfort and to keep lights on, smile on faces,” he said.
Cibello is one of over two dozen eateries in the uptown areas of San Diego, promoting curbside pick-up during the Coronavirus stay at home order.
Restaurants are attempting to feed the community, carefully.
“We hand bags with gloves and then gloves are discarded,” he said.
But many people found it difficult to maintain a safe six-foot distance, from the crowded pizza pick-up line in Hillcrest, to the customers paying with cash, or credit card at the liquor store.
It means adjusting to a new way of life, like others around world.
“My parents are in Milan locked up 23 days now today, and they received the same type of service,” he said.
With Cibello’s parents also sheltering in place in Italy, his view is, at least we're all separated together.
“I think the world will be a better place after this,” he said.