At noon Monday, the Australian Government ban on eating indoors at cafes and restaurants came into force. By 12.15 hungry city workers were happily sitting down and eating their lunch at some of the few remaining tables and chairs at the food court at the Westfield shopping centre in central Sydney. 

It was proof people still don’t understand, or are just ignoring, the Government advice to tackle coronavirus.

Only Sunday, Government ministers and medical chiefs reacted furiously to pictures of sun worshippers crowding Bondi Beach in their thousands. That prompted the local council to close the beach altogether.

Varying levels of compliance to the new rules were found, from seats 100 per cent shut off, to dozens having lunch with colleagues indoors.

Dozens of people were seen flouting the restrictions on eating in after the ban kicked in.

At Westfield in the CBD, staff had been diligently moving chairs away for hours before the ban.

However, the food court features tables and chairs screwed to the floor that are unable to be moved. Sofas, fastened in place, line much of the eating area.

These areas were not cordoned off and within minutes of the lunchtime rush beginning, albeit a much quieter rush, customers were taking up the seats to wolf down sushi, burritos and salads.

Many talked about coronavirus.

At least 50 people, many in small groups, were seated around the food court when they should have opted for takeaway.

However, many attempted to keep some space between them and others – a nod to social distancing at least.

People may be confused about how the new rules apply.

People are seen at a restaurant ahead of the nationwide shut down of cafes, restaurant and licensed venues.

For instance, no one was dining actually within a cafe or restaurant. These seating areas were all roped off. And, strictly speaking, all had bought takeaway food.

Rather, they were sitting in the large communal area between the various outlets. But the fact there were no chairs at many of the tables should have been a clue dining in was discouraged.

At the nearby McDonald’s on George St, compliance with the regulations was absolute. Yellow and black tape was draped over the immovable chairs and tables. Eating there would have looked like you were disturbing a crime scene.

A cafe on a busy city street that had many sit-down diners at 11am, had none at 1pm.

At the Queen Victoria Building, a historic arcade that leans towards luxury retailers, the rules were also being abided by.

Tables and chairs were piled on top of each other in a bid to stop people sitting down.

Many food outlets shut off designated sitting eating areas at noon.

All the seats were piled on one another and with no permanent tables and chairs there was no where to even perch.

Nearby, at the Galeries mall, the issue of how to stop people sitting on immovable seats was solved by piling all the tables on, next to and beside them, leaving little room to lunch.

But one man had found a way, squeezing himself in at a far end, although there was no one within five metres or more of him.

Two schoolgirls, faced with no seats, simply crouched on the ground of the food court to eat their burgers face-to-face, next to a rubbish bin.

Nonetheless, many people seemed to have got into a rhythm with the new rules. Queuing up at Oporto’s chicken burger outlet, customers were several metres apart, keeping their distance.