Pubs and bars can only remain open in the highest coronavirus alert areas of England if they operate as if they were a restaurant and serve substantial meals, the government said on Monday. After Prime Minister Boris Johnson set out a new three-tier system, the government said of those areas in the “very high” alert level: “Pubs and bars must close, and can only remain open where they operate as if they were a restaurant - which means serving substantial meals, like a main lunchtime or evening meal. They may only serve alcohol as part of such a meal.”