Redgum Bendigo owner Matt Spolding said the past few days had been "super stressful" because his restaurant had been booked out for the weekend.

"Changing gears is what we find really hard to do because we're geared to be a sit-down restaurant and you can pace how many bookings are coming in," Mr Spolding said.

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"The switch to fast food is where it gets really hard and takeaway is super fast food. Everyone wants it fast, but we're a restaurant. We're not a fast food place."

Mr Spolding said his restaurant moved fully to takeaway options, with waitstaff becoming delivery drivers to meet demand.

"We were more geared to try and keep the waitstaff working this time around," he said.

"During lockdown, we changed the way we ran the restaurant and kept it close family with minimal staff to just try and keep the business running because all of the overheads just keep coming.

"That's where it's hard. Your revenue is reduced but your overheads are still the same. For me, the only option is to try and keep going because it's our only income. It's our livelihood."

The Laneway Bendigo owner Sarah also said the lockdown was "pretty devastating" for her business.

"We all knew it was coming," she said. "We have been here before so we know all of the signs.

"But I think businesses were just starting to get back to pre-COVID levels, and people don't come out again and start spending straight out of lockdown so it's hard."

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Sarah said she had to cut the hours of her casual staff during the week of lockdown, with only one permanent staff member and herself organising takeaway orders.

"We also reduced our business hours," she said. "We're more open just to show that we're still here. We also have Menulog, which is a stream of revenue that some businesses don't have."

Sarah said while every business was preparing for the potential extended lockdown, she was hopeful it wouldn't come to that.

She urged Greater Bendigo residents to support local businesses where they could.

"What people need to understand is that realistically, it doesn't matter if it's a big cafe or a tiny one like ours, lockdown hurts everyone," she said.

"We know everyone is affected money-wise, but if you're out on the street, support your local - even if it's just a $4 coffee."

Mr Spolding also echoed the calls for support.

"Get behind the local people because this is our income," he said. "We're small.

"These are our businesses, they're not part of a big chain that has support behind them. We rely more on the locals in the community supporting us."

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