"It's a start", this was the most used three words from pubs that have opened their doors following their eleventh hour inclusion with cafés and restaurants being allowed to open their doors on Friday.

The two pubs that are open for table meals are Mary G's and the Goonellabah Tavern.

Closed is The Gollan, the Station Hotel, The Channon Tavern and Nimbin Hotel.

Glenn Tomkinson from The Gollan did say that he would re-open "probably in the next week" after hiring a new chef and saying that debunked the rumours that the Gollan will not re-open its doors. "It just hasn't been worth it", Glenn said, "with all the restrictions, the wages will kill you".

Cath Simes at Mary G's is taking bookings only (6622 2924) while they are in Step 1 which means no more than 10 seated people inside the pub at a time. There is tray service for drinks from the bar while you enjoy your meal.

Mary G's is currently doing renovations to expand their dining area adding another 40-50 people upstairs that will also be used for functions. The renovations should be completed by the end of next week.

Mick Drew at the Goonellabah Tavern is taking bookings only for an hours sitting with pre-ordered meals to make the most of your time with tray service for drinks (6625 1290).

Mick's prediction for pubs to open for live music is 2021. "This is only a prediction but I just can't see it happening before the end of the year. Live music attracts crowds of more than 100 people and if it is restricted with social distancing it won't be worth running a band", he said.

The Station Hotel has not re-opened it's doors for seated meals, it remains takeaway pizza's only at this stage.

Manager Kim Barnes is hoping for New Zealand type regulations where pubs can have up to 100 diners in their venues now. In NSW, that is Step 3 with Step 2 next, increasing the number of diners to 20 following a successful Step 1.

Having our local pubs fully re-opened still looks a long way off. This is one industry that is going to struggle for most of 2020. As the hospitality industry hires a lot of casual workers some are on JobKeeper and those that were not eligible have had to go on JobSeeker unless they had another main source of income.

Not only do we need to support cafes and restaurants but throw pubs into the pot of dining out money that you use to support local business.