This 'Pac Man' Mask Lets You Eat Without Taking It Off

“Then you can eat, enjoy, drink and you take out the fork and it will be closed, and you’re protected against the virus and other people sitting with you,” the mask’s inventor, Asaf Gitelis, told reporters at a recent demonstration of the mask.

While the effort to make restaurant dining rooms immune to the spread of infection is admirable, the mask is a little disturbing looking in practice, and would likely become unsightly during the course of the meal were it to become stained with food, thereby ruining the experience of going out to eat in the first place.

There’s also the very practical concern that if the mask opens to allow the wearer to eat (thereby opening his or her own mouth) accompanying diners would be exposed to any germs released while the mask is open — which would render wearing the mask pointless.

The idea is similar to a mask invented by a clothing designer in New Orleans which features a hole in the front that fits a straw, making it easier to sip a cocktail or ice coffee while keeping your face covered. It’s in line with other ideas for ways to safely reopen restaurants, including plastic barriers between diners to prevent transmission. These efforts are well-intentioned. There are no easy solutions to the challenges posed by COVID-19 as the world reopens; however a mask that opens to let you eat — thus exposing yourself and others to unwanted germs — just doesn’t seem like it will pass muster.