Viral

Celeb chef Jose Andres is doing everything in his power to be part of the solution when it comes to the coronavirus ... and it starts with feeding America, practically for free.

We got Jose outside his famed D.C. restaurant, Jaleo, on Tuesday where he was preparing to open the joint and serve to-go only meals for $7 to those who can afford it, and for free to those who can't.

Jaleo is just 1 of Jose's 8 restaurants in D.C. and NYC where he's doing this ... and his reasoning is simple -- it's practically a call of duty. The Michelin rated chef -- who's famously feuded with President Trump -- says what he's doing by turning his fancy joints into community soup kitchens, is what every well-off restaurant owner should be doing too.

Check out the video ... Jose's preparing for the worst, which would explain his much bigger ambition to have other restaurants take part in feeding the needy. As he put it, he does NOT want the lack of food to make the ongoing medical crisis any worse.

BTW ... Jose's kept the social distancing guideline of 10 people in mind. The sidewalk outside his restaurant is marked with "stand here" flyers to keep patrons spread out.

Giada De Laurentiis is taking a page out of Tupac's book of lyrics -- saying while we're all under quarantine ... it's time to change the way we eat and change the way we live.

The celebrity chef joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" and shared some food for thought, quite literally, about coronavirus isolation forcing us to simplify. With the run on grocery store supplies, Giada says we've gotta learn to make do with fewer options.

She says the future looks bright for canned goods and frozen foods, which will become more in vogue the longer quarantines last. Giada says gone are the days of whipping up 20-ingredient dishes. You might have the time, but good luck finding supplies.

We know what you're thinking, canned veggies taste like, well, canned ... but Giada's got tips to make 'em taste way better.

The dearly departed hopefully won't hold a grudge over low funeral turnouts -- coronavirus is keeping loved ones at home.

TMZ spoke with several prominent funeral homes in major cities across the country -- and the overall message was this ... they're scaling back, and finding innovative ways to grieve those who've passed on during the global pandemic. Prepare for morbidity, folks.

For starters, several mortuaries -- including some in Chicago, San Fran, Fort Lauderdale, New York and Los Angeles -- tell us they're planning on limiting the number of guests allowed at any given burial service in the coming weeks ... hard as that may be.

With the CDC's newest guidelines of no more than 50 bodies in one place at one time ... it sounds like just about all the parlors will attempt to honor that. The question of how is interesting though ... each spot does it differently, some with more ingenuity than others.

Chicago's Leak & Sons Funeral Home says it's considering implementing a "family only" rule for now, in hopes of keeping things compact. James C. Boyd Funeral Home in FL says it's putting a hard cap of 50 people per service ... and a morgue in NYC says they're drawing the line at just 25 at a time. A funeral joint in SF tells us they've seen customers push out funeral dates entirely, solving the problem of crowd control for them.

Now, the more innovative route is being embraced fully by a cemetery in L.A. called Hillside Memorial, where tons of celebs are buried. They say they're offering live streams as an alternative, so anyone who wants in on the service can watch from home.

Some of these other places have streaming options too, but none quite as robust as Memorial's -- which normally costs $235 a pop. Not these days though ... we're told they're waiving it in light of the new safety measures brought on by the outbreak.

So, no worries, your funeral can still get max views. 💀

Mint juleps in September, anyone!?

Churchill Downs has announced the most famous horse racing event in the world -- The Kentucky Derby -- will be postponed from May to Sept. over the coronavirus scare.

It's the first time the race won't be run in May since 1945 ... when officials called off the event due to WWII.

“Throughout the rapid development of the COVID-19 pandemic, our first priority has been how to best protect the safety and health of our guests, team members and community," Churchill Downs honcho Bill Carstanjen said,

"As the situation evolved, we reached the difficult conclusion that we needed to reschedule. At no point did we ever consider canceling the Kentucky Derby.

The plan is to reschedule the race from May 2nd to Sept. 5 -- which just needs final approval from the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission. The KHRC is expected to give the thumbs up on Thursday.

Dierks Bentley is shutting down his famed bar in Nashville but he's vowing to sink $90k directly into the pockets of his hourly employees.

The country superstar announced Monday he's closing Whiskey Row in the heart of Nashville on Lower Broadway for a while. The 5-Hour Energy spokesman said his heart goes out to everyone affected by the coronavirus. Dierks also put his money where his mouth is.

The "Drunk On A Plane" singer said he's immediately giving each one of his 90 hourly employees a thousand bucks "to help in the short run as our community and country try to get a handle on the situation."

Dierks also implored all bar owners to follow his lead, and look after their most essential and vulnerable employees ... like bar-backs, waitresses, security guards and dishwashers.

The move, of course, comes just hours after the Trump administration announced a guideline calling for no gatherings of more than 10 people, and the city of San Francisco shutting down for the next 3 weeks.

Dierks is just one of several country singers who own bars and have taken the steps to close doors to help stem the spread of the virus. Jason Aldean closed his Jason Aldean's bar and Florida Georgia Line closed "FGL House."

The long arm of the law isn't backing down from the highly-contagious coronavirus ... and while cops are taking some precautions, they're just used to facing danger at every turn.

Cops across the country are telling us the same thing ... they're not afraid to arrest and interact with suspects, break up fights or subdue people in the face of a deadly pandemic.

Our law enforcement sources in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Miami and Green Bay tell us their officers face much bigger dangers every day on the force -- bullets, cars, staph infections etc. -- and most cops are under the age of 55, so they feel less at risk.

Sources tell TMZ ... at the LAPD, COVID-19 is just another occupational hazard, and officers are being instructed to wear gloves and not touch their face. We're told cops are still gonna get hands-on with suspects if they have to -- they're not just gonna let s*** hit the fan -- and the virus won't stop anyone from doing their job.

As we first reported ... one woman's already been arrested for allegedly threatening to cough on a cop and spread the virus.

Our sources tell us L.A. Sheriff's Department deputies are using caution when responding to calls, and if they're not sure how to handle a situation they're being told to call a supervisor. We're told LASD is picking and choosing battles, but if deputies need to get hands-on, they will ... and they're carrying special coronavirus kits.

Law enforcement sources tell us the NYPD has its officers wearing masks and gloves and exercising caution ... but laws still gotta be enforced, and that's what the NYPD is doing.

Our sources also tell us cops in Chicago are also being cautious, but they still have to answer calls and nothing's changed on that front.

Ditto for police in Miami, though sources say cops might not respond to calls where a police report can be taken over the phone. Still, we're told cops will still get in the mix when it's necessary.

Law enforcement sources tell us police in Green Bay are educating themselves on the virus, and they want officers to have access to safety tools like wipes and gloves. In the meantime, cops are taking more reports over the phone and will respond to calls when needed.

San Francisco is going the way of Italy with its coronavirus safety measures -- the Mayor's instituting around-the-clock curfew, banning almost everyone from leaving their homes.

Mayor London Breed announced what she calls a "defining moment" in U.S. response to the pandemic. Beginning at 12 AM, all residents within the city can only leave home for doctor's appointments or runs to the grocery store.

It's the strictest new policy enacted in the nation, and matches the current rules in Italy ... which has been the 2nd hardest-hit country in the world.

The Mayor says the rule will remain in effect for at least the next 3 weeks.

In addition, to the city shut down, 6 Bay Area counties are telling residents to "shelter in place." That means ... unless your work falls under the list of "essential businesses," you've been ordered to stay home.

That list of essential businesses includes health care operations, grocery stores, shelters, media outlets, gas stations and banks. Restaurants can remain open, but only for takeout and delivery.

People are clearing out grocery aisle shelves amid the coronavirus pandemic -- but the microscopic enemy's also got folks ready to shoot their way out this problem.

At least two gun stores in the San Fernando Valley -- just outside of L.A. -- had lines coming out the door this weekend, as people flocked to apparently stock up on firearms. The two locations pictured here are Gun World and Guns Direct -- both in Burbank, CA.

It looks like people were actually standing in lines that went down the block and reached surrounding store fronts -- which, of course, begs the obvious question. WHY?!?!?

It could just be the fact they got some pretty good sales going on right now -- a 9 MM SD9VE Smith & Wesson for just $380 ain't half bad -- but the more realistic reason lies in the panic caused by COVID-19. Funny enough, Pete Wentz just talked to us about this on Saturday, and sorta poo-pooed those whose first instincts are to run to their local gun shops.

He said it didn't really make sense for Americans to snap up guns at such a frantic pace, because coronavirus ain't something you can take out with a bullet. That said, Pete also acknowledged that whenever there's public fear of any kind ... 'Murica likes to grip their pistols for some reason.

Dave & Buster's is a place where kids and adults alike love to play -- which, by and large in Cali, has NOT closed its doors up to this point ... but that could change soon.

TMZ spoke to at least 9 different D&B locations up and down California, and they all pretty much told us the same thing ... they haven't closed up shop, but they are seeing way less traffic come through these past couple weeks -- part of which isn't even their own doing.

We're told a lot of these Dave & Buster's have been instructed by their local governments to reduce the number of people they let in the building down to just 100, including employees. That said, it sounds like it's just slow all around in the arcade/bar/restaurant these days.

Still, we're told those who are working shifts have changed their routines a bit. Some locations tell us certain staffers have been designated to just wiping and sterilizing the joint, from individual game stations and tables ... right down to the menus and ketchup packets.

Of course, it appears D&B might be one of several different venues across the state that will be directed to close up shop -- whether it's locally here in Los Angeles or anywhere else. Governor Gavin Newsom on Sunday instructed bars and clubs to shut down.

And, when it comes to restaurants, he says they should start scaling back their capacity by at least 50%. Ditto for L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti -- so it looks D&B could be on a hiatus, along with many other bar/restaurant locales.

The funny thing is ... it feels like a lot of residents aren't heeding the directive of health officials, because L.A. was pretty poppin' this weekend. Same for Nashville, too, apparently ... viral video of a massive gathering at a bar there proves some folks aren't taking coronavirus all that seriously.

Sylvester Stallone's new movie is doing what a lot of other productions and production companies have halted almost immediately ... continuing to film amid the coronavirus.

The movie star was down in Atlanta Saturday, where he was filming on set for his upcoming sci-fi flick, 'Samaritan,' in full costume and makeup. What's crazy about that ... it appears COVID-19 was on the brain of several others working as well, based on their attire.

Check it out ... there's a woman wearing a face mask who was working on Sly's wardrobe. Not just that, but there was a guy in a freakin' hazmat suit doing what we're told was apparent cleaning on set too. Meanwhile, Stallone was out there unprotected.

Sly hasn't been careless about the virus either -- he was just spotted out here in L.A. last weekend wearing latex gloves while doing some shopping. He's well aware of the risks.

It begs the question ... with so many other movies these days halting production out of an abundance of caution, why is Sly's flick moving forward? Especially, when the staffers on the ground are CLEARLY worried and actively taking steps to ward off coronavirus???

The answer remains unclear -- it could be a decision coming down from the head studios producing this movie -- MGM and Balboa Productions (Stallone's company) -- or it could be a decision from some bigwig behind the scenes. Maybe even SS himself ... who knows?

What's even crazier is that Atlanta is no stranger to coronavirus -- there've been at least a few dozen confirmed cases in and around the area. Georgia's governor even declared a public health emergency recently, so it would appear the virus is running rampant there too.

Another curious thing here ... MGM just pulled the plug on the new Bond movie, 'No Time to Die,' because of coronavirus. So why are they moving forward with this?

Whatever the case ... here's hoping Sylvester's taking the necessary precautions. Be safe out there, bud.