Category: COVID

3 COVID-19 Restaurant Trends That are Here to Stay

Post author By admin
Post date September 10, 2020

With the pandemic forcing restaurants into a new way of operating, many had to implement changes that they might not have foreseen. But, as Datassential notes, “at their core, most problems consumers identified [during COVID-19] weren’t stemming from new needs.” As a result, many of these new choices or ways of working could benefit customers and restaurant operations in the long run. So here are three changes we predict are here to stay:

More Technology and Innovation

To implement contactless interactions and make it easier for customers to place takeout and to-go orders, many restaurants have upped their technology game, installing self-order kiosks and contactless payment systems. Many have also launched electronic menus, online ordering capabilities, more robust mobile sites and user-friendly apps.

While this may have been an unwelcome or unforeseen cost initially, by investing in technology now, restaurants will be better set up for success going forward as customers become increasingly used to the convenience it provides. Of course, there’s no substitute for personal interaction, but if used correctly, technology can amplify great service, especially during this time.

Increased Flexibility & Convenience

Certain measures restaurants have had to put in place because of the pandemic have resulted in customers getting used to some flexibility that they will likely look for going forward. These conveniences that could stick around post-pandemic include direct delivery, easier pick-up procedures, reduced wait times thanks to a simplified menu and technology that gives customers more control over their in-restaurant experience.

Transparency in Hygiene & Sanitation

people wearing protective masks and gloves

Most of us are aware of cleanliness and safety procedures more than ever, and we don’t foresee that mindset going away anytime soon. Even after COVID-19 subsides, customers are likely to carry with them a heightened awareness of these precautions, and they’ll turn to restaurants that they know prioritize their guests’ health. Restaurants that are more transparent about how they prepare food and the steps they’re taking to keep everyone safe will benefit in the long run.

These are just a few of the changes that have the potential to become the new status quo between restaurants and customers. And as restaurants continue to innovate, we expect to see even more new ways of working that will delight customers and benefit restaurants’ bottom lines.

COVID Marketing Communications

Learning From COVID-19 & Preparing for What’s Next

Post author By admin
Post date August 12, 2020

PREPARING YOUR RESTAURANT FOR THE REST OF THE PANDEMIC

Staggered reopening mandates and varying sanitation guidelines from state to state have made operating a safe restaurant during COVID-19 a moving target. With the duration of the virus still unknown, restaurant operators will continue to face new and varying operational challenges. So here are some strategies to help your restaurant learn, prepare and adapt to the rest of the pandemic.

LEARN FROM THE INITIAL IMPACT

Was your restaurant over or understaffed? Was transitioning to online or to-go ordering a success or failure? Did everyone follow social distancing and mask rules? Your restaurant can learn a lot from the challenges you’ve already experienced. So it’s important to meet with all departments as soon as possible to record these lessons before they’re lost.

Handle a debriefing with 100% of staff from management to back of house.

Identify strengths and weaknesses by honestly answering “What did we do well?” and “What do we need to work on?”
If possible, recruit a third party not associated with the restaurant to lead the meeting and record everyone’s honest feedback in a judgement-free environment.
From the feedback, create actionable steps for procedural, functional and policy changes that can strengthen your restaurant’s future response.

PREPARE FOR POSITIVE CASES OF COVID-19

Does your restaurant have a plan of action if someone on your team tests positive for COVID-19? While there is no best answer, there is a best approach to minimize the spread and impact: act quickly, isolate and clean. Creating a plan around the points below can help mitigate closing the restaurant for an extended period of time. But ultimately, your decision to shut down will depend on your restaurant’s size and the number of employees exposed.

According to the CDC, any employees who work within six feet of an infected worker for 15 consecutive minutes should stay home for two weeks following their last exposure.
Reassess ways to reduce future interaction between employees, and reorganize the food production process so it’s easier to identify any additional workers who may also need to be removed.
After exposed employees have been identified and excluded, perform a deep cleaning of the restaurant with an EPA-registered disinfectant including guest-facing areas, areas where infected employees work, counters, service stations, high touch points and food contact surfaces.
Ensure all employees are using masks and social distancing while in the restaurant to avoid any more positive cases
With isolated employees out of the restaurant and a deep cleaning complete, it is safe to reopen.

CONTINUE TO DO WHAT WORKS

Have you seen more success with curbside and to-go orders even with an open dining room? Or have you welcomed more guests back by creating outdoor seating? Restaurants don’t have to reinvent the wheel for every challenge of the pandemic, they just have to focus on what’s already worked—and be agile enough to adapt when problems arise. To focus on what’s working:

Regularly talk with guests and staff to monitor areas of success.
Offer incentives for customer feedback to get insights into your guests’ preferences.
Shift operations to meet your guests’ demands, such as offering the most popular menu items or becoming a to-go only restaurant.
Think outside of standard orders by partnering or catering to large groups like a local hospital.

COVID Marketing Communications Advice

The Boxed Lunch Is Back – How to Cater During COVID

Post author By admin
Post date July 16, 2020

Boxed lunches. Prepackaged snacks. Bottled soda, coffee and water. As employees return to the office, health and safety will be front and center—and that includes how everyone can eat at work. And restaurants who can pivot from buffet-style catering to individual meal solutions will be the first to get the call. So here are a few key ways your restaurant can better meet the demand for safe corporate catering.

CATER TO THE RIGHT GROUPS

Until it’s safe for everyone to return to work, the demand for many catering orders comes from essential services like construction companies, research labs and the medical industry. Start by catering to these businesses within a 5-10 mile radius of your restaurant. Market directly and online. Getting your restaurant listed on platforms like Relish by ezCater—that allows companies to make group catering orders easily—is a great place to start.

FOCUS ON WHAT TRAVELS WELL

Forget the chafing dishes and Sternos and focus on salads, sandwiches, well ventilated fried foods and meals that travel well as a boxed lunch. If you haven’t already, now may be a great time to reevaluate your delivery packaging to keep your catering orders as fresh as possible. A big part of this is travel time. So be sure there are enough drivers to anticipate both catering orders and lunch rush. Because when it comes to delivering big orders, you can’t be too early.

OFFER SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE

While buffet-style catering is on hold, you can still offer customers more control over their orders with customization options. This could include DIY combos that come with an entree, choice of sides and drink. Or offering boxed lunches with better-for-you choices based on diet preferences such as a low-carb lunch box or vegan options. But your restaurant doesn’t have to stop at lunch. Catered breakfasts are also an underserved market, especially for construction and busy first-shift healthcare workers who may only have a handful of choices.

GET CREATIVE WITH CATERING OCCASIONS

You don’t have to wait for corporate catering holidays like Employee Appreciation Day or Holiday Parties to market your catering services. You can also market after high-profile events like the Monday after Super Bowl or July 4 weekend with hangover breakfast bundles. Or, offer feel-good incentives on everyday occasions like matching meals for frontline workers with every catering order your restaurant receives.

DELIVER ON SAFETY

As employees are not eager to leave the office for lunch, bringing in food safely is critical. Start by reminding your customers of what safety measures are already in place for To-Go orders and what is different for catering. In addition to tamper-proof bags and ensuring your delivery driver is following safety guidelines, your restaurant could also:

– Ask for names of each order to package and mark each meal to minimize handling

– Offer a mask, gloves and cleaning wipes with catering orders for the office manager who will be handling everything after drop off

– Over-communicate with the office manager to set expectations for when and how the order will be delivered

COVID Restaurant Branding Advice

Is Your Restaurant’s Google Presence Optimized For Covid-19 Recovery?

Post author By admin
Post date June 25, 2020

As time ticks on, doors to restaurants are opening for indoor and outdoor dining state by state. We know that as a restaurant owner or manager, you have been spending countless hours cleaning, sanitizing and preparing to open. But have you been reaching diners who are hungrily searching the internet for what to eat? Consider this nine-point checklist to ensure your restaurant has the best seat in the house online:

UPDATE GOOGLE MY BUSINESS PAGE INFORMATION

Assuming that you already have an approved Google My Business page set up, make sure you go through and update the appropriate sections. In addition to updating your store hours, service areas, contact information and descriptions, you’ll want to also utilize the appropriate attribute tags such as accessibility, amenities, crowd, dining options, highlights, offerings, payment options and event planning. This past month, Google went ahead and added attributes for service options for restaurants which include: Dine-in, Takeout, Delivery, or Curbside pickup. If you need any assistance setting up or optimizing your business page, our SEO specialists at Push are happy to assist.

ADD PHOTOS THROUGH GOOGLE MY BUSINESS

When it comes to dining, everyone eats with their eyes first. So make your business as craveable as possible with the Google My Business menu—where you can update photos from your restaurant. Besides your profile picture and cover photo, you can post anything that supports your restaurant such as food, bar, drinks or customers.

HIGHLIGHT YOUR MENU

While this Google My Business feature takes some time to set up, it creates the best user experience in the search engine results. Give your future diners the ability to view your menu from Google’s results by uploading each menu item, picture and description. While this isn’t a new feature, it’s one you should certainly leverage if you haven’t already.

TURN ON GOOGLE MESSAGING

This is a newer feature within Google My Business that can help you increase engagement with users that may have specific questions. After enabling, you can download the Google My Business app and be alerted when users attempt to message your business. The best part is your phone number remains completely anonymous.

BUILD A CONTENT CALENDAR

Google My Business allows you to post directly from your business page in the search engine results. By actively posting updates, Google shows superb communication with searching customers. Just like any platform, the best way to stay organized is a good content calendar, making sure your messages are enticing and remain focused.

IMPLEMENT RESTAURANT SCHEMA MARKUP

One of the most important aspects of competitive search engine optimizations is Schema markup, which includes identifying important information on your website within the code on the page. When added, additional snippets of information about your business will appear in search results, increasing the prominence of your restaurant. While Schema is a fairly repetitive process, it typically takes a professional programmer to implement correctly. Let us know if this is something you have not done already for your restaurant website.

SOLICIT REVIEWS FROM PREVIOUS CUSTOMERS

No one can give a better recommendation than your previous customers. So create a link to your Google review submission page and share it with your guests. While you can’t entice anyone to write a positive review, you can certainly request an honest one. If you’re putting in the effort, great reviews will come easy and will help you stay top-of-mind with your customers.

REACH OUT TO BLOGGERS AND PUBLICATIONS FOR REVIEWS

One of the best ways to increase your restaurant’s presence on search engines are backlinks from relevant articles. The best way to get featured in relevant (but local) articles is to invite local publications and food bloggers for reviews. These reviews are not always easy to come by, but Google will reward you when an often-visited blog or publication writes about your restaurant and links to your website.

SET UP RESERVATION BOOKING

COVID-19, Restaurants, Corona Virus, Reservations

As restaurants open at limited capacities, reservations have become increasingly important for running operations efficiently. So make sure you are set up through an approved Google vendor and can book reservations directly though the search results page. Resy, for example, is a reservation platform tied directly into Google that allows users to book right from the search results.

Google values the most in-depth user experience, so utilizing these tips will help reward your restaurant with more attention. Let us know if you haven’t set up your Google My Business page or need help implementing any of the above tips. As always, we’re here to help you Push Forward.

COVID Restaurant Marketing Communications

Satisfying Comfort Food Cravings

Post author By admin
Post date June 25, 2020

While people continue to navigate their new normal, one constant has emerged in dining: Guests are craving comfort food now more than ever. Diners report having a hunger for comfort foods 25% more than before, and 40% of them are motivated to order because of that craving. Thinking of how you can seize on this trend in your restaurant? Cozy up to the following tips.

Hero Hearty Favorites

If people are seeking out comfort food items at your restaurant, consider giving them special prominence on the menu or featuring them in promotions. Keep in mind that to-go or takeout messaging might be a great place to promote these options as those types of dishes tend to travel well.

If comfort foods continue to be in high demand, you may even go so far as to trim your menu and shift your focus to these popular offerings, especially if other particular menu items haven’t been selling as well.

Focus on Family Style

Comfort food favorites are often those that are easily made or served “family style,” like mac ’n cheese, pasta dishes, pot roast, meat loaf, etc. Are there dishes you can convert to offering family style to give them that added dash of coziness and convenience? Similarly, you could consider bundling these offerings with drinks or dessert to round out the meal.

Add Home-Cooked Favorites

Are there simple dishes you could add to the menu to enhance your comfort offerings? Soups paired with simple sandwiches could be an easy way to up your menu’s comfort food level. Soups are also easy to order large quantities of to save for later and offer that nostalgia and sense of home we’re all craving.

Share on Social

And finally, don’t forget to spread the word. Comfort food photographs almost as good as it tastes. Get up and close and personal with the dishes and post crave-worthy shots on social to really get mouths watering.

COVID Marketing Communications Advice

DINE IN OR DELIVERY? Tips for Balancing Marketing Messages

Post author By admin
Post date June 11, 2020

Even as many restaurants are now fully reopen, revenues on the whole are down compared to pre-pandemic numbers. Consumers are still cautious about returning to dining in as previously accustomed to, necessitating that curbside, drive-thru and delivery become mainstays in your restaurant’s sales quiver—at least for the time being. So how do you prioritize your marketing messaging to ensure you are driving consumer confidence to dine in while still promoting all the other ways customers can still enjoy your food? Consider the following tips.

Strike a Balance

While it’s great for restaurants to be able to once again welcome guests into their dining rooms, we know some customers are still hesitant to dine out and some may be more comfortable ordering delivery or picking up food curbside for the foreseeable future. Keep those customers in mind as you promote the return to dine-in service, and be careful to not brush off their concerns.

Promote What’s New

Instead of focusing exclusively on dine-in and neglecting delivery or pick-up messaging, spend time instead talking about any special offers or new menu items. That’s a sure way to draw customers in—and from there, you can share information about dining in, delivery or to-go options. Promoting loyalty or rewards programs is another worthwhile approach, as doing so can help drive dine-in visits in the future.

Be Timely

As you’re balancing these messages, make sure what you’re sharing is extremely timely and relevant to help eliminate any confusion over your current state of operations. Stay active on social media to answer questions or respond to reviews. And consider creating a COVID-19 FAQ document or section of your website so guests can have your most up-to-date information.

Be Transparent

To further manage expectations during a time when customers crave trust, be as transparent as possible to let customers know what to expect. Have you implemented new protocols and processes? Is your dining room still getting up-to-speed as it reopens? Share all that with customers. Are you winding down delivery, but still offering curbside service? Be proactive in letting customers know and, if you can, give some insight into why you’ve made the decisions you have.

Ask for Feedback

We know that moods and minds are constantly changing as we navigate this new normal, so check in with customers and ask for feedback on what they want to hear more of, what they may be confused about or what they need more information on. Their answers can help you identify the marketing messages they would be the most receptive to at any given time.

COVID Restaurant Marketing Communications Lifestyle

MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR OUTDOOR DINING SPACE

Post author By admin
Post date June 10, 2020

According to Dataessential research, 47% of diners are willing to dine-in at a restaurant with outdoor or patio seating. So if you’re considering maximizing your restaurant’s capacity by expanding outdoors, now may be a good time to think about the logistics of your setup, safety measures and curb appeal.

START WITH THE BASICS

By expanding your restaurant’s square footage to sidewalks, patios, the street or even the parking lot, you can operate at closer to full capacity. But before you start moving outside, check for any state and local mandates to determine how much space your restaurant is allowed to accommodate and how temporary your setting will be. Beyond any local ordinances, here are a few things to consider for your space:

Consider your average party size for your restaurant, such as a table of 4 or 6 people, to best determine the ideal table size for your outdoor area
Space tables 6 feet from other tables measured from the back of each chair, chair-to-chair
While folding chairs and patio tables may be appropriate for temporary setups, more permanent fixtures like picnic tables and heavy seating that are difficult to move will help ensure social distancing is maintained
Set up an outdoor host stand to help direct diners when they arrive
Clearly designate areas for foot traffic and your restaurant to help diners navigate your outdoor area and prevent congregating too closely
Help give outdoor diners peace of mind with outdoor sanitation stations, your COVID-19 policies, inviting safety signage and notices that your staff is regularly cleaning all surfaces, just as they would do indoors

KEEP IT LEGAL

While many state and local governments are temporarily suspending the necessary permits needed for outdoor dining, it’s important to keep a few things in mind before setting up:

Don’t put any temporary furniture over street drains that could impede water flow
Ensure outdoor dining areas are not in any fire lanes or obstructing access to fire hydrants or any other safety amenities
Consider what your pet policy will be for your outdoor dining area
When in doubt, contact your local municipality to ensure you are following the correct processes and have the proper permissions

DRESS TO IMPRESS

Not only does an open air environment lower the risk for spreading COVID-19, but it can also make your restaurant look more enticing to passersby. If you can invest especially in dialing up the decor of your outdoor space:

Use planters to transform an outdoor space by creating natural barriers and even minimizing surrounding noise
Temporary decking, turf or platforms that cover the ground can also help demarcate the space while providing ADA accessibility
Keep your diners comfortable by providing shade with canopy tents, umbrellas, fans or even portable AC
Bring your indoor branding outside by adding color treatments to barriers that separate seating, or by defining areas on the ground with chalk, corn starch paint, epoxy gravel or tempera paint

COVID Restaurant Branding

SIGNS OF THE TIMES? How to Help Diners Feel Safe with Signage

Post author By admin
Post date May 22, 2020

Despite all the challenges associated with reopening your restaurant’s dining room, there’s a reason to make the effort: people miss dining out. According to a QSR Magazine survey, 70% of respondents say that dining out would help them feel normal again. We’ve covered ways to bring customers back to the dining room, but another crucial consideration is how you share your message in-restaurant. So here are some ways to leverage your branding and thoughtfully implement signage to build diner confidence and to help diners feel safe.

WALK AND TALK THIS WAY

Tour your restaurant and experience it the way your guests will. Consider all the touchpoints that could become communication opportunities. These could include:

Designated parking signage for curbside pickup or to go
Updated bathroom signage for employees with language about properly washing hands such as “Let’s protect each other & our guests by washing our hands for 20 seconds”
A “welcome back” message for the front door
Signs about clean hands on a sanitation station in the lobby
Floor decals in waiting areas that help keep guests six feet apart
Signage for currently closed rooms or tables for mandated seating capacity limitations

CUSTOMIZE TO SHOW YOU CARE

Off-the-shelf signs with harsh color palettes and bold typography can cause unnecessary stress and feel unwelcoming to guests. Signs that evoke feelings of danger or active construction zones are the exact opposite of how you want to welcome your guests back. So customizing your own signage in your brand voice, type and colors with a friendlier tone will help put customers at ease.

Utilize any custom fonts in your brand type or the closest available from your sign developer
If it fits with your brand, consider a softer, more welcoming message such as “Let’s Wear Masks” vs. something off-the-shelf that sounds impersonal or sterile like “Must Wear Masks!”
While white is neutral for almost any brand, consider colors in your palette that will help guests feel secure, such as cool, calming colors, muted tones, earthy greens or shades of blue

STAY ON BRAND

Each sign should be an opportunity to not only communicate the steps you’re taking but show your brand’s personality with creative illustrations or clever phrasing—and in some cases, even humor. Just as you’d carefully consider how to redesign your restaurant’s interior, introducing any new signage should integrate with your existing architecture. Consider the material, color, location and scale of these new signs that will complement the space. For example, if your brand is more rustic, consider metal materials or signage that looks more handcrafted. If your brand is more clean and polished, consider something more minimal, simple and elegant.

SAY IT LOUD AND WITH A SMILE.

Social distance shouldn’t equate to emotional distance. Connect with your guests by helpfully communicating what they should expect on their next visit. This may be necessary not just for the initial re

opening, but for each phase outlined by the CDC—especially as seating capacities change.

Detail all the safety measures you’ve put in place—what’s new or different that your guests will be able to see, and even some they can’t
Simplify your message to include only the most relevant info for your email, social and even video
Maintain a friendly and welcoming sentiment such as “We’re working on some changes to protect our guests and team” or “We can’t wait to see you back inside our restaurant”
Include more than safety messaging in your social and emails with an offer to rebuild trust, especially when communicating with any existing loyalty members
Establish a landing page with more in-depth measures your restaurant is taking for guests who’d like to read more

COVID Restaurant Marketing Communications

Evolving Your Menu To Be Contact-Free

Post author By admin
Post date May 22, 2020

As restaurants continue to open their dining rooms, one staple of the sit-down experience may never look the same—the menu. Traditionally a high-touch surface for guests, menus of the handheld variety are being rethought to reduce the spread of germs and contact points at the table. Consider these ways to evolve your menu to make ordering safer and maybe even optimize the process altogether.

GO DIGITAL WITH QR CODES

Digital menus look to be the future of contactless ordering, and one of the easiest, lowest-lift ways to implement this in your restaurant is likely through the use of a QR code. Guests can scan a QR code with the camera on their phone, which delivers a digital version of the menu right to the palm of their hand. Ruth’s Chris Steak House has done just that in its reopened dining rooms with QR codes that point to both their full dinner menu and wine list. From there, guests could order in-person or from a simple form triggered by the code.

Digital menus also have some great added benefits. As restaurants get more comfortable with the technology, they could start to play with customization and optimization. As Hospitality Technology points out, digital menus could be constantly reorganized by most popular dishes, allergens, dietary restrictions, price point and more. The publication also notes that QR codes can eliminate the exchange of money or cards during the payment process as a second QR code could allow the diner to pay via their phone.

BRING THE BOARD

If QR codes are a bit too cumbersome at the moment, restaurants could go old school with a large menu board servers could bring to the table. This keeps the ordering process contactless and would better accommodate guests without a smartphone or those not as comfortable with technology. Another similar option would be to invest in a large digital board that all diners could view before sitting down or from their seat.

KEEP IT SIMPLE

Restaurant, COVID-19, Corona Virus, menu

A solution like a menu board might require pairing down your menu for the time being, which also could have its benefits. As he told Food & Wine, Tony Gemiginani, chef and owner of two restaurants in San Francisco, expects to offer a simplified menu with small plates, aimed at creating a more approachable, affordable and fast dining—and serving—experience.

PRINT IT OUT THEN THROW IT OUT

Printed, single-use, disposable menus may also be an easy option for restaurants to implement in the interim before developing a longer-term contactless solution. Just keep in mind—this method still involves the waitstaff placing menus at the table, so it’s not entirely contactless, it could require some design and printing setup to get things started, and it contributes to the amount of waste produced each day.

No matter how you evolve your menu ordering process, what’s most important is that you choose a direction that’s safest for your guests and best for your bottom line as everyone adjusts to a new way of dining out.

COVID Restaurant Marketing Communications

GETTING YOUR GUESTS TO DINE IN WITH CONFIDENCE

Post author By admin
Post date May 13, 2020

Moving forward, the dine-in experience will look very different for your team and your guests. So anticipating everyone’s concerns, needs and demands now will help your restaurant return to profitability sooner. If you’re ready to reopen, we’re ready to help you navigate the new normal with checklists and strategies that will prepare your operations for the next phase of dining.

REEVALUATE BEFORE REOPENING

Work with your team to start mapping your new operations. Start with any guidance state and local governments have already provided. Beyond that, here a few best practices to keep in mind:

Remove tables and bar stools from your dining room in accordance with social distancing and seating capacity guidelines
Close any self-serve areas like buffets or beverage dispensers
Install any new protective equipment like plexiglass at check out or spacing indicators on the floor, as well as dedicated entrance and exits to reduce face-to-face exposure
Stock up on gloves, face masks, soap, sanitizer, disinfectants and protective equipment for your staff
Reevaluate your menu for crucial ingredients that may or may not be available
Reconsider dining hours and think about how much staffing and labor you will need and how you can adjust based on demand
Evaluate your training materials and create new ones focused on new sanitization, capacity or any new safety measures you’re taking
Consider designating a team member for every shift to manage the new safety standards

COMMUNICATE WHAT’S CHANGED FOR GUESTS

The more restaurants can do to put guests at ease, the better. Transparency is key in managing expectations for a dine-in experience. Utilize email, social your website and even video for communicating your reopening timeline, dine-in hours and the steps your restaurant is taking to keep everyone safe.

From the parking lot to the bill, get some perspective on what guests can expect by walking through their journey through your restaurant
Communicate anything that’s changed that a guest can see like a waitlist, employee protective gear and limited seating, as well things they can’t like new food prep procedures
If you’re still thinking about how to schedule and staff your dine-in operations, consider sending a survey to your guests to gauge interest

GET INTO A NEW DINE-IN ROUTINE

With your checklist and communication in place, you’ll be well equipped to reopen your doors. Start by getting your team and guests adjusted to a new, safe routine that should include many of the following:

Conduct temperature and wellness checks before your team begins work and encourage anyone feeling ill to stay home (some restaurants like O’Charleys are even checking temperatures of guests, too)
Sanitize all high-touch surfaces between guests
Provide hand sanitizer for guests at each table, in the restrooms, at the bar, and on the host stand.
Limit tables to 10 guests and separate parties by at least 6 feet including the waiting area
Consider having guests wait outside and text them when their table is ready to avoid a crowded lobby
Offer disposable utensils, condiments and menus or sanitize items after every use
Be sure your team is washing their hands after every guest interaction like swiping credit cards, handling money, serving tables or every time they return to the dining room
Limit contact wherever possible by keeping front door propped open and offering contactless payment

MAINTAIN OFF-PREMISE OPTIONS

A Restaurant Business survey found that only 31% of consumers as of May 2020 are comfortable dining in within the next three months—making online ordering and off-premise solutions a must during this transition. But what are some ways they would be more open to the idea of dining in?

The same survey found that 64% would consider an earlier visit if a restaurant installed automatic doors
56% would like restaurants to provide personal sanitation kits at each table
39% will avoid ordering beverages that are not served in the original can or bottle