How COVID-19 forever changed the restaurant industry

While difficult to project this early into recovery, we've put together a few predictions of what the restaurant industry will look like post-pandemic. 

Health and safety continue to come first

The most pressing concern for customers and employees is safety. Restaurant owners must ensure their customers and workers feel safe. A Zagat survey showed that three in four diners cite health and safety concerns as the biggest deterrent to dining out, far outweighing financial reasons. And 80% of Snagajob surveyed workers said they plan to protect themselves and wear a mask to work regardless of the job requirements. 

At this point, customers expect no-contact ordering and payment. Where that is not available, visible sanitization, including frequent wipe-downs, hand-sanitizing stations and mandatory PPE for all staff and customers, is necessary.

The need for an agile workforce

While restrictions have lifted, many businesses are not operating at full capacity due to staffing shortages. Companies have moved towards more tech-enabled management and optimization tools for worker staffing, scheduling, backfilling, and hiring to stay ahead. Even pre-pandemic, a worker's average length of time in the foodservice industry was just under 60 days. Getting people hired and onboarded is also a lengthy process, the average new hire interview process pre-pandemic took over 10 days, and has only increased in the last 12 months. 

Many employers are embracing a more agile workforce powered by the gig economy and are less reliant on the traditional hiring route. Restaurants adapting their labor models to utilize flexible work will prove essential in order to better compete in both the short and long term. 

Curbside is here to stay

Restaurants that are late to the take-out game must adapt quickly and should expect a permanent increase in take-out and curbside delivery services. Take-out has always been considered convenient, but now many diners expect the ability to order take-out, pick it up curbside and enjoy contactless payment.

Rethinking the future 

To accommodate all of these changes, restaurants will need to reimagine many aspects of their businesses, from the technology their team uses to reconfiguring space for more carryout and socially distanced seating. 

While nobody knows what the future holds, restaurants are poised to have a strong summer and carry that momentum forward into the fall and beyond. Restaurant owners can be confident that by adopting best practices, upholding employee and customer safety and remaining flexible, the future may bring even greater success than what came pre-pandemic.