Texas strip club says it can reopen as restaurant - with food, masks and no lap dances
Texas began to reopen Friday, with retail stores, movie theaters and restaurants allowed to open at 25% capacity, per the order issued by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.
Bars, salons and adult entertainment venues are not included in Phase One of the state’s reopening plans, according to the Texas Attorney General’s office.
But that did not stop a Houston strip club from reopening just after midnight Friday.
“We have a full-service restaurant,” Eric Langan, who owns Club Onyx’s parent company Trumps Inc., said after Houston police raided the establishment, according to the Houston Chronicle. “Everybody in there is ordering food. You have to order food to come in, that’s part of the deal. Yes, we have strippers here. That’s entertainment.”
Police and fire marshals arrived shortly after midnight, according to the Chronicle, and told Langan to close his doors to the public. Langan refused and held out as authorities worked on what to do next.
Langan showed the media, including the Chronicle, his Houston Health Department permit that lists the club as a “full-service restaurant.”
But the club is also earmarked as a sexually oriented business on its license to sell alcohol — along with being a full-service restaurant — the Chronicle reported.
According to ABC13, Club Onyx was following social distancing guidelines and all the entertainers and customers were wearing face masks.
“We’re not allowing any lap dancing, and they have masks on,” Langan said to ABC13.
Langan said after he was told he would be charged with a class B misdemeanor charge for opening Club Onyx, he closed its doors about 4 a.m., reported ABC13.
Houston Assistant Chief James Jones said the case remains under investigation.
“It’s novel for us because of the situation we’re in with the executive order from the state,” Jones told the Chronicle. “There is some question of where we’re at. It says it’s a club, so that gives us our first clue.”
Earlier this week, the club had announced on Facebook that it was going to open their doors at midnight on May 1 “as a restaurant with entertainment.”The post stated the club would have stations set up with hand sanitizer.
“I guess the DA decided they would take charges and press charges against me if I wouldn’t close tonight, and since we are so close to closing time, we are going to go ahead and pack up everybody’s food to go,” Langan said to ABC13.
“I just find it funny that they’ll arrest a taxpaying, law abiding citizen for a Class B misdemeanor ... but they won’t press charges against people breaking into cars right now,” Langan told the TV station. “I mean, what has the city come to? I mean I live in Houston, Texas. I didn’t know I moved to San Francisco, California.”
What’s next? Langan said the doors to Club Onyx will open at 7 p.m. Friday, according to the Chronicle.