Break out the sunscreen, shake out the beach towels and prepare for a week of sunny skies and balmy weather.
With highs between 19 C and 21 C expected in the next few days, Mohamed Dehairi, owner of Cafe Zanzibar on Stelley’s Cross Road in Central Saanich, reopened his extensive outdoor space on Tuesday.
He had closed the restaurant and put on hold plans for a new menu when the province announced a ban on indoor dining at the end of March amid rising COVID-19 case counts. At the time, it didn’t seem worth continuing, as new tents and heaters would have taken close to three weeks to arrive.
That all changed when the sun came out and temperatures started rising. “When I saw the weather changing, we opened,” Dehairi said Wednesday, noting the restaurant’s loyal customers are returning. “I’m blessed that I have as many seats as customers who come.”
Dehairi has outdoor seating in both the front and rear of the restaurant, and there’s a large driveway that can be repurposed for serving. His landlord next door even offered part of his garden if needed.
Now Dehairi is looking forward to printing out the summer menu as planned, and continuing to welcome back cutomers.
Some outdoor patios have already installed tents to protect customers from the sun as the restaurant sector, hard hit by the pandemic, looks to fill seats.
Saturday’s temperature is poised to break a record for that day in April — the forecast high is 21 C, which would beat the previous high of 19.9 C, said Environment Canada meteorologist Armel Castellan.
It can’t come too soon.
“February had its cold patch. March was certainly colder than normal and April started that way as well,” said Castellan, noting the summer-like weather is courtesy of a high-pressure system.
“This ridge is blocking — it’s not moving — so the temperatures can build one day over to the next to the next to the next.”
As well, overnight temperatures will be above zero, in the range of about 5 to 7 C, he said.
A high of 19 C is expected today, followed by three more days of sun, taking us through the weekend with highs of 21 C.
The average high for April 15 is a cool 13.3 C, but the temperature has dipped as low as 1.1 C (1972) and as high as 23.3 C (1947).
Clouds and some wind could reduce temperatures a degree or two on Monday and Tuesday, Castellan said, with a high of 19 C forecast for Monday and 17 C on Tuesday.
There’s a chance temperatures will then rebound for two or three days and remain above normal, he said.
After that, we’ll probably see a more typical Pacific weather pattern as more precipitation appears.
