SUDBURY -- Despite both the city and province seeing a continued rise in COVID-19 infections, outdoor dining was allowed to resume in regions that are under the province's 'Grey-Lockdown' restrictions, including Greater Sudbury.

As of 12:01 a.m. Saturday, restaurants in Greater Sudbury were allowed to seat and serve guests on their patio. The premier made the announcement late Friday afternoon, leaving businesses owners scrambling to prepare.

"It came very unexpected, a little bit short notice," said Attilio Langella, the owner of Sudbury's Overtime Sports Bar and Grill.

"I got the call from my partner at 5 o'clock (Friday). He was saying we had the go-ahead to open up as of 12:01 a.m. this morning, so off I went to Costco to pick up some propane tanks for our heaters behind me."

Along with Sudbury, bars and restaurants in Toronto, Peel Region, Thunder Bay District Health Unit and Lambton Public health were able to open back up outside.

Restrictions include strict physical distancing measures, masking when not seated and having tables limited to members of the same household.

With temperatures far above seasonal for this weekend, accompanied by plenty of sunshine, Langella said the news came as a welcome reprieve after a very challenging year for his business.

"This industry's been hurting so, so long and we've taken such a beating through this whole pandemic and we're trying to do our best."

Many other restaurants also jumped at the opportunity to serve more guests, including The Laughing Buddha, located in Sudbury's downtown core.

After making multiple investments in its patio over the years, the team did everything they could to be ready.

"We're not even actually open during the days normally but we saw the nice sunshine and decided we should get everybody back in and allow people to come and enjoy the space in the sunshine," said Veronica Desjardins, one of the managers of the restaurant.

"So it definitely wasn't easy and we're lucky to have flexible staff."

Looking to elongate its outdoor dining throughout the year, The Laughing Buddha added fire tables and heaters late in the fall of 2020. Guests are provided with clean blankets as well.