At the corner of Second Avenue and Broadway, Hard Rock Cafe finds itself pretty much at Ground Zero in the conflict over how to safely reopen the bars and honky-tonks of downtown, but they’re not taking the issue lightly. The international chain of restaurants has established its own safety regimen called "SAFE + SOUND," a series of procedures created in collaboration with global health and sanitization partners such as ECOSURE and NSF International, formerly known as the National Sanitation Foundation. These guidelines seem to go above and beyond normal cleaning practices, including full sanitization nightly for each Hard Rock location.
In another statement of solidarity in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the chain is offering a free dish of one of their “Legendary Burgers” at more than 25 locations around the world. (Remember when it was a big deal to buy a Hard Rock shirt when you visited any of the cities where there was a Hard Rock Cafe? No? Just me? OK, I’ll go empty out that drawer now.)
To qualify for the gratis burger offer, which runs through the end of July, frontline workers need only present a valid health or emergency service identification or proof of employment. The deal is for dine-in only (so wear a mask!) with a limit of one free burger per person. It has to be tough to be the responsible one in the middle of a big party going on around you, so maybe we can consider Hard Rock as the DD of Lower Broad.
