Restaurant reopening ideas: Instead of getting back to where we were, why not try to get to something better? As an ex-restaurant owner, I have some suggestions.
Add a “Dine in” option to the DoorDash app with a table number as the address. Avoids all conversation with servers. Food is delivered to a side table for guests to help themselves.
Add a tent card to tables with phone numbers so diners can text the kitchen (for special orders), your server for the fork they forgot, or the front-of-house manager for anything else.
Relax local zoning laws to allow for expanding restaurant seating into sidewalks, roads, and parking lots. Traffic can be redirected. Won’t work everyplace.
Allow some restaurants to temporarily set up barbecue businesses in parks for the summer.
Using the honor system, open first to families and couples that have been isolating in the same household. No mixed seating at tables. Maybe loosen that for outdoor dining where there is space.
For outdoor dining, allow dogs to accompany on leashes. That isn’t legal where I live.
The larger idea is to rethink restaurant models from scratch. Maybe we can make them better than ever, at least in some ways.
