Starting Monday, pets will be allowed in Portuguese restaurants—but don’t expect to see a lot of them, because the new law that lets them in also sets up stringent conditions and unclear procedures.
The laws allows, but does not require, a restaurant to welcome pets—as long as they are short-haired, on a leash, not allowed in food preparation or storage areas, not allowed to wander, and may be restricted to a special area. Restaurants that go through the registration process must hang new signs to announce that they are pet-friendly, as some might want to avoid them. And the owner must designate the total number of animals allowed at a time.
Some restaurant owners say that the rule is not only confusing, but might open them to liability for any damages caused by a pet to another customer; Portugal’s largest restaurant owner group says it expects few places will sign up.
The bill was passed last year with support from the Green and Left parties; it was originally sponsored by the People-Animals-Nature, or PAN Party.
