Sign at Texas restaurant threatens a $50 fee ‘If I have to explain why masks are mandatory’

“$75 – If I have to hear why you disagree…”

Wayne LaCombe told CNN that he got the idea after seeing a similar sign online.

“I thought, ‘Oh, that’s funny. I’m gonna put that up because it does send a message,'” he said. “And not five minutes after I put it up customers coming in were laughing and taking pictures of it.”

To drive the message home, one of their servers, an art student, painted a woman wearing a mask on the restaurant’s window with a caption that said masks are respectful, not political.

Effective March 10, Gov. Greg Abbott loosened restrictions meant to stop the spread of Covid-19, including doing away with the mask requirement and allowing all businesses to reopen 100%. Abbott did so because active Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations were down to levels not seen in months.

LaCombe said he and his wife have gotten their first doses of the vaccine, but many of their staff are not yet vaccinated.

The restaurant’s tables are spaced out, they’ve cut down on capacity, employees wear masks and wash their hands between going to each table and they take everyone’s temperature before they enter the building. There is also hand sanitizer at every table.

He said that two couples came in on Friday and told him that it was the first time they had eaten in a restaurant since the pandemic started.

“We feel very honored and privileged that they have chosen us,” he said.

He said they’ve gotten a great response from their customers and some neighboring business have congratulated them for making a statement, but there has been some grumbling online.

Kat LaCombe is a retired oncology nurse with 28 years experience and has responded to some of the criticism in a post on the restaurant’s Facebook page.

The LaCombes opened their restaurant in October 2019 and had to close for two-and-a-half months because of the pandemic.

Wayne LaCombe said he’s not sure the business can survive if they have to close again.

“We have a race that we have not finished, and when the numbers go up our business goes down,” he said. “So yes, it’s very urgent that we keep the numbers down.”