As the city lifted its vaccine mandate for indoor dining and entertainment Monday, Mayor Adams marked the milestone by visiting city restaurants and celebrating the food industry — all part of his singular focus on the city’s economic recovery.

During a morning walking tour in the East Village, he met with restaurant owners and lunched at Veselka, the popular Ukrainian-owned restaurant that has raised tens of thousands of dollars in relief for Ukrainians.

Effective Monday, proof of vaccination is no longer required at indoor restaurants, indoor fitness facilities and entertainment venues including theaters and museums. Speaking to reporters, Adams said lifting those restrictions is both symbolic, in signaling the city has reopened for business, but also substantive.

“We’re making sure we patronize the restaurants that allows our cooks, our chefs, our bartenders, those low-wage employees will be able to recover,” he said.

Restaurant owners said they support any move toward normality and that lifting the vaccine mandate helps unburden their staff.

“I’d like my hosts and hostesses to be welcoming people instead of asking them for documentation,” said Tom Birchard, Veselka’s co-owner.

Barbara Sibley, owner of La Palapa, a longstanding Mexican restaurant on St. Marks Place, also applauded the Mayor.

“I’m so happy that the mayor is out today to also communicate to New Yorkers the changes,” Sibley said. “Because now we’ll also, when folks come in to eat, we’ll be able to help them navigate the changes.”

In the afternoon, the mayor continued his culinary focus by touring the International Restaurant and Foodservice Show of New York at the Javits Center, wandering the exhibition area and enjoyed a variety of samples – paying special attention to the plant-based foods area.

His ongoing message is that it’s time for New York City’s comeback.

“People are ready to get back into their restaurants and there is no fear in doing so,” he told reporters outside Veselka. “We’ve got to get back. We’ve got to get back.”