RESTAURANT SHOCKS THE FRENCH BY OPENING AMID PANDEMIC

Ordering some food, a glass of wine to go with it, all this in a real restaurant: unimaginable in many parts of the world currently in lockdown. At least, that's the case in France, where one Nice restaurant has made a name for itself, albeit in a rather negative way. Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa) reported.

Flouting all nationwide restrictions during the pandemic, the "Poppies" restaurant opened and served lunch to dozens of guests on Wednesday, January 27, 2021, according to local media, prompting condemnation from locals and officials.

"I can't stand to see my terrace being empty anymore. This is my resistance," the regional newspaper Nice Matin quoted the manager as saying.

Like in much of Europe, restaurants are closed across France as part of restrictions in place since the end of October, and the situation in the country remains tense.

Photos and videos in French media showed the spectacle of what is otherwise a common sight: people eating together at tables outside a restaurant.

"Liberte," Christophe Wilson, the owner of the Poppies restaurant reportedly shouted as he served the food - freedom.

The restaurant owner's actions sparked widespread indignation across France, where both "Liberte" and eating out bear great cultural significance.

"It was clearly a militant action," the newspaper Le Parisien quoted municipal official Benoit Huber as saying.

The restaurant's manager was taken into police custody on Wednesday evening, as was a chef - a foreigner working there illegally, the prefecture said.

According to reports, the operator was initially taken into custody for this reason.

WEEKLY FEATURE : JOSE MARI CHAN AND THE CHRISTMAS ANTHEM