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business Saturday 18 april 2020
US restaurants expect big changes when their doors reopen

By DEE-ANN DURBIN and come some days; two- duction of apps like Uber- er side of this is," he said. With those numbers in
PAUL WISEMAN thirds of the staff have yet Eats; that may accelerate While they wait, some res- mind, many restaurants
AP Business Writers to return to work. if shell-shocked consumers taurants are already exper- were already shifting away
The days of standing shoul- That's changing the ex- stay home. Menus will likely imenting. Simons added from big dining rooms. In
der-to-shoulder at a bar or perience for diners. Rae be pared down, with more fresh produce and other December, Applebee's
sharing a meal at a table Elloso, a teacher in Hong focus on food that travels grocery items to his Found- opened its first takeout- and
for 10 are gone for now Kong, eats out occasion- well. John Gordon, founder ing Farmers restaurants this delivery-focused restaurant
— and could take a long ally because she feels it's of San Diego-based Pacific month. It was a big suc- in Mobile, Alabama. The
time to return even after important to have social Management Consulting cess. Simons has rehired store is half the size of a tra-
the coronavirus pandemic contact. Dining out is more Group, which advises res- 175 of his 1,100 staff mem- ditional Applebee's, and
ends. peaceful now, she said, but taurants, thinks U.S. restau- bers, and he's making 60% all the food is packaged to
U.S. restaurants are thinking go.
ahead to a time when their Bent Hansen, the owner of
dining room doors reopen Los Gringos Locos, a Mexi-
to a changed world. can restaurant near Pasa-
Owners say there may be dena, California, says it
physical differences, like will be up to restaurants to
masked waiters, dispos- make diners feel comfort-
able menus or fewer tables able. That will likely mean
so patrons can sit farther visible cleaning, fewer
apart. tables, touchless ordering
There will be signs explain- and lots of hand sanitizer.
ing cleaning procedures He's also thinking of hir-
and glass dividers to pro- ing his own delivery drivers
tect cashiers. so he can make sure cars
Disinfectant wipes might sit are sanitized and the food
next to napkin dispensers. is protected until it's deliv-
"The pivot with my restau- ered.
rants doesn't anticipate Restaurants will eventu-
a return to exactly what ally bounce back, predicts
was," said Dan Simons, the Henry Pertman, director
owner of Farmers Restau- of operations at Total Im-
rant Group, which owns six age Creative, a Maryland-
restaurants, a bakery and a based hospitality consult-
distillery in the Washington ing firm.
area and a restaurant in "If you think this is going
Pennsylvania. to make people want to
Restaurants that have re- In this April 15, 2020, photo, Dan Simons, one of the owners of Founding Farmers, stands outside his cook their own meals while
opened in Asia provide a restaurant in Potomac, Md. surfing the Food Channel,
blueprint. Associated Press. you're wrong. You can only
In Hong Kong, public gath- burn so many pot roasts,"
erings are limited to four also a little uncomfortable rants — like Asia's — will of pre-virus sales at one lo- he said.
people, and restaurants when some seating areas have to follow local guide- cation and 80% at another But some restaurants just
must keep tables nearly are blocked off. lines when they reopen. between takeout and gro- can't make the math work
5 feet apart. Customers' "When restaurants tape Earlier this week, California ceries. right now. The Downtown-
temperatures are taken at up chairs and tables, the Gov. Gavin Newsom sug- Simons expects to continue er in Lafayette, Indiana,
the door, and they are re- impression I get as a diner gested the state might re- grocery sales once his din- closed its dining room in
quired to wear masks unless is that they don't want me quire temperature checks ing rooms reopen. He's also mid-March and quickly
they're eating or drinking. there, even though I know and more distance be- considering other ideas, abandoned takeout after
In Hefei, China, the La this is not the case," Elloso tween tables. like renting out the dining getting only a handful of
Ma Restaurant reopened said. David Siu, who also Gordon says regulations space for events. orders. Now the 69-year-
March 17 but still checks lives in Hong Kong, has no- about density will affect Even before the pandem- old restaurant is shuttered
diners' temperatures and ticed that restaurants try to restaurants differently. ic, Simons said restaurants until the crisis passes. Its six
disinfects the premises ev- turn the tables over more Sit-down restaurants like were struggling with the full-time employees are
ery two to three hours, said quickly because they have Cheesecake Factory are popularity of takeout and signing up for unemploy-
employee Yang Gui. less capacity. designed to bring in a cer- delivery, high labor costs ment benefits.
Business is down by half Delivery is also accelerat- tain amount of money per and lower alcohol con- Still, Manager Yolanda Tim-
compared with before the ing in China, indicating square foot, so they would sumption among younger mons said she's optimistic
outbreak, Yang said. many people still want to see their profitability drop. patrons. that the restaurant will re-
As few as a dozen diners eat at home. Spending on Fast food chains generally Overall traffic at U.S. restau- open when the outbreak
food at restaurants, con- don't have a lot of business rants was flat last year, ac- recedes.
venience stores and other in their dining rooms, so cording to NPD Group. But "We're going to have the
outlets dropped 30% in Chi- they may not feel as much digital orders for takeout biggest party when we
na in January and Febru- impact. were up 33%, while digital can all get out,'' Timmons
ary, but delivery spending But with business down as orders for delivery rose 16%. said.q
was up 10% in that period, much as 80% in the sec-
according to NPD Group, a tor right now, Gordon said,
data and consulting firm. most restaurants aren't yet
Takeout and delivery were focused on the impact of
already gaining in popu- potential regulations.
larity in the U.S. before the "They're just trying to survive
pandemic with the intro- to get to whatever the oth- linda.reijnders@cspnv.com