Transitioning Back to Normal Part II: Restaurants

As the Coronavirus Pandemic continues worldwide--the restaurant business has been particularly hard hit with an estimated two of every three employees in this industry out of work...

The worldwide Chinese Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic is decimating economies everywhere.  Most segments of the economy are feeling pressure.  Particularly hard hit is the restaurant business.  According the National Restaurant Association, nearly $80 Billion in revenue has been lost in this industry since the pandemic has spread worldwide.

91% of hourly employees in the restaurants of America have been laid off as of April 13th according to Restaurant Business journal online.

Companies that are household names worldwide--like McDonalds, are reporting same store revenue decreases of 22%.  Some pizza chains are reporting an uptick in sales--as one might anticipate given the nature of the nationwide "stay at home" orders all over the country now.

Some analysts predict the landscape for the restaurant business will be radically altered post-pandemic.  Chain stores will weather this financial maelstrom better than "mom and pop" stand-alones.  Many of the independent full-service restaurants may not even come back--according to other experts.

So what will restaurants locally look like post-pandemic?  Will we ever be back to normal?

(First off--just so citizens understand what happened and when---Escambia County Commissioners DID NOT close businesses and restaurants in our county.  The Governor, through executive orders, did.  We as a board voted to close the beaches at the desperate request of the Health Department and the CEO's of the three area hospitals--but other decisions about business closure locally were made in Tallahassee--we were "preempted" from those decisions.)

Like what other states and communities are doing--I do believe restaurants will open up soon, and under certain conditions.  I believe they will have capacity limits placed on occupancy (to insure social distancing) and I believe servers and hostesses will wear face coverings.  I anticipate restaurants will require reservations so they can maximize the occupancy and efficiency of what will become their new normal of reduced seating availability in order to maintain social distancing. I also believe that a new normal will include this:  once food is "dropped" on a table-- a relatively soft but firm suggestion will be made that patrons "self-limit" seat time to 30-45 minutes post-meal receipt out of courtesy---- so that the next guest(s) can be accommodated.  I think folks will learn to adapt to this and become accustomed to extending this courtesy to the restaurants......

And I also believe many restaurants we all know and love won't make it back--which is unfortunate.

But the overall restaurant business will come back, albeit modified and operated differently with a renewed emphasis on take out and delivery to help make up for losses in the capacity of "on-premise" dining by customers.

Innovation and deft operational maneuvering will be the key for the surviving establishments.

I'm simply ready for them to open again--can't wait and wish them all the best going forward!