FDA: Best Practices for Re-Opening Retail Food Establishments

[Midpack]

I don't think the "virus police" will enforce the limits here in Texas. But it is immaterial because the key to restaurants re-opening will be when people feel safe and I don't think that will happen anytime soon. Why take a chance just to eat BBQ or Mexican food (that is the only kind of restaurants we have).

Not a restaurant but I went back to a community boating activity center for the first time this morning. They reopened at noon today and there were several advance emails stressing masks and gloves required, distancing required and dilute bleach would be provided to spray down equipment before each use.

There were 7 people there. Distancing occurs pretty naturally. I was the only one who even brought a mask and gloves? The center Director, who sent the emails, didn’t have either? And there was no bleach solution there? WTH?

I guess most every business feels a need to publish clear precautions. Some will make every effort to enforce them (already are), some don’t have any intention to enforce at all, and some in the middle. Interesting times...

The problem with restaurants is you can’t see the kitchen, dishwashing, etc. from the dining room unless it’s an open kitchen at least in part. There’s a big trust element...

 

[Turbo29]

Not a restaurant but I went back to a
The problem with restaurants is you can’t see the kitchen, dishwashing, etc. from the dining room unless it’s an open kitchen at least in part.

You would be surprised how often the sanitizing cycle in the dishwasher is not working properly, either because the machine is out of sanitizer or is malfunctioning.

 

[tmm99]

There were 7 people there. Distancing occurs pretty naturally. I was the only one who even brought a mask and gloves? The center Director, who sent the emails, didn’t have either? And there was no bleach solution there? WTH?

I

Just curious... Did the topic of wearing a mask or the lack of ever come up while you were there? I'm afraid that a situation like that might happen to me and I might want to leave...

 

[gwraigty]

The problem with restaurants is you can’t see the kitchen, dishwashing, etc. from the dining room unless it’s an open kitchen at least in part. There’s a big trust element...

The head of the restaurant advisory committee in Ohio said that you might not see some people in the back room wearing a mask if it's against safety regulations. If you cook food in conditions where you could have a flareup, like with open flames or grease fryers, it would be dangerous. I've worked in various restaurant kitchen environments and can vouch for that.

I'd advise that if it's a concern, to ask if kitchen staff are required to wear a mask. If not, they should have no problem explaining the safety reasons for exceptions.

 

[Aerides]

The problem with restaurants is you can’t see the kitchen, dishwashing, etc. from the dining room unless it’s an open kitchen at least in part. There’s a big trust element...

If you could see everything that goes on in most restaurant kitchens you'd never eat out again anyway, even in "normal times"

One more reason to start with sushi!

 

[Midpack]

If you could see everything that goes on in most restaurant kitchens you'd never eat out again anyway, even in "normal times"

One more reason to start with sushi!

I worked in restaurants all through college, I have seen. Mostly they were clean with good practices, there were occasional exceptions. And I’ve eaten in restaurants for 45 years since then, but coronavirus will probably change things.

 

[Midpack]

The head of the restaurant advisory committee in Ohio said that you might not see some people in the back room wearing a mask if it's against safety regulations. If you cook food in conditions where you could have a flareup, like with open flames or grease fryers, it would be dangerous. I've worked in various restaurant kitchen environments and can vouch for that.

I'd advise that if it's a concern, to ask if kitchen staff are required to wear a mask. If not, they should have no problem explaining the safety reasons for exceptions.

Being a restaurant cook is usually fairly strenuous fast paced work, I can’t imagine doing it with a mask.

 

[Chuckanut]

I don't think the "virus police" will enforce the limits here in Texas. But it is immaterial because the key to restaurants re-opening will be when people feel safe and I don't think that will happen anytime soon. Why take a chance just to eat BBQ or Mexican food (that is the only kind of restaurants we have).

My guess is that after the initial euphoria of being able to eat out again dies down, most people will be reluctant to eat out as often as they have in the past. After all by now they have discovered how to cook, and how much money they can save preparing meals at home. Below are two pizzas I made by hand. Less salt, four cheeses, a generous amount of toppings, and a partial whole-wheat herb infused crust. Would you rather have one of these or a pizza from a place called Clowns Pizza? Really, that's the name.

 

[gwraigty]

Being a restaurant cook is usually fairly strenuous fast paced work, I can’t imagine doing it with a mask.

Yes. I remember cooking at McDonald's, going outside after my 8 hr. shift, and feeling like I was walking into air conditioning on a 90 degree humid summer day. In our local Chinese takeout places, I can feel the heat from the kitchen radiating out into the small lobbies.

They also said if you're working in a hot environment where the mask would get soaked quickly, it's not happening. That would carry over into some manufacturing environments. Working around certain heavy machinery might have to be a mask-free zone, too.

 

[tb001]

I do not know the person who authored the link but I thought it provided some good information. This and suggestions. I would read the questions as well.

The author teaches at UMass where she performs infection control work but not in this area. She is sharing her thoughts for family and friends. It went viral.

The website is quirky. When it locked up, I copied and pasted from the address bar and it worked until it locked again.

https://www.erinbromage.com/post/th...BTihfN_NiVHeosdbq-vTZTyDtCeAF5ouQ1cLYqSHpjxZo

Agreed, I thought this was an excellent article and presented complex information in a very simple and intuitive way. I believe she is a he though!

 

[W2R]

We just got back from..... eating lunch out, at our favorite Italian place!

Here's how they were handling re-opening the restaurant:

There was one other table with customers, a woman with three unusually well behaved children, over on the other side of the restaurant. Chairs were removed from most tables so it was obvious where you could or couldn't sit.

The wait staff was wearing masks and gloves, and was utterly fastidious as always! They were cleaning and disinfecting tables, chairs, and everything before and after each customer, and changed their gloves several times for various reasons while we were there. We were so glad to see them, and vice versa. In fact the waiter was choked up and half in tears he was so glad that we are OK and decided to return. He has a wife and three kids to support, so heaven knows he and others that work there need the business. Management gave us a free lunch because they want to encourage us to return to eating there often. We gave them a fairly large tip (same amount as the lunch would have cost if we had paid for lunch).

The food was better than I ever remembered. So good. And it was nice to be back there at last.

After lunch, we went to the boat launch to watch the birds and sailboats, and it was not even crowded! Just like the "good old days" when we would do that after lunch. Then we circled by the gym (closed until the 25th, painting and putting in more equipment), and his barber shop (still closed).

OK, after ten weeks of semi-seclusion this was our idea of a wonderful day.

 

[REWahoo]

We just got back from..... eating lunch out, at our favorite Italian place!

Wow. You are living on the wild side!

 

[W2R]

Wow. You are living on the wild side!

I tell you, it really felt like it!! This was the first day it was allowed, but then we are always on the leading edge.

 

[Beststash]

We just got back from..... eating lunch out, at our favorite Italian place!

Although I think Italian food is Gods gift to planet earth, after watching Kevin Belton's N'awlins cooking, I would love some good étouffée, gumbo, or jambalaya.

 

[brewer12345]

Although I think Italian food is Gods gift to planet earth, after watching Kevin Belton's N'awlins cooking, I would love some good étouffée, gumbo, or jambalaya.

Ain't that hard to make, just be careful when you make the Cajun napalm.

 

[statsman]

We just got back from..... eating lunch out, at our favorite Italian place!

Congrats. DW is chomping at the bit to eat out at a restaurant where the food didn't hold up well to take-out the one time we tried it. This was surprising because the restaurant does a good amount of to-go business.

The wait staff was wearing masks and gloves, and was utterly fastidious as always! They were cleaning and disinfecting tables, chairs, and everything before and after each customer, and changed their gloves several times for various reasons while we were there.

Who would have thought that eating in a hospital cafeteria-like environment would be so appealing!

 

[W2R]

Although I think Italian food is Gods gift to planet earth, after watching Kevin Belton's N'awlins cooking, I would love some good étouffée, gumbo, or jambalaya.

Well, New Orleans Italian has its own je ne sais quoi, and the restaurant owner/chef grew up in New Orleans so he knows his stuff. I ordered a cup of crawfish and corn chowder, which made me over-the-top happy! I missed that soup. F ordered the spicy shrimp pasta alfredo which is good, but we had been getting that as take-out and I am tired of it. LOL Plus I am trying to cut back on calories and carbs, so the soup worked out better for me this time. Both dishes were so heavily spiced up with Cajun spices that they were sort of aimed at locals I guess.

 

[Leo1277]

Reading all these comments really makes me wonder that the main element of eating in a restaurant is the enjoyment of the social component. I mean, if I need to go to a store for something, or even the doctor for something unavoidable, then practicing distancing, wearing gloves/masks and taking all the precautions is not great but necessary and acceptable under the circumstances. But in restaurants, seeing the place half empty and seeing waiters like in a hospital cafeteria, as the previous poster says, just kills the fun.

Here is an interesting article from a restaurateur about the situation from their perspective, as well as an attempt to frame the big picture of the restaurant situation in the US: https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/14/opin...iracle-to-survive-the-pandemic-dey/index.html

 

[Moemg]

My guess is that after the initial euphoria of being able to eat out again dies down, most people will be reluctant to eat out as often as they have in the past. After all by now they have discovered how to cook, and how much money they can save preparing meals at home. Below are two pizzas I made by hand. Less salt, four cheeses, a generous amount of toppings, and a partial whole-wheat herb infused crust. Would you rather have one of these or a pizza from a place called Clowns Pizza? Really, that's the name.

Those pizzas look fabulous . Do you deliver to Florida ?

 

[CaptTom]

Reading all these comments really makes me wonder that the main element of eating in a restaurant is the enjoyment of the social component.

I think that must be it. Personally, I don't really enjoy it. Probably because I'm anti-social. I'll eat out when it's convenient, and that's OK. But it's not something I look forward to.

Figure out what to wear. Drive somewhere. Fight for a parking space. Wait for a table. Be led to an uncomfortable chair. Wait for someone to show up to take the drink order. Wait again for them to take the food order. Wait for the food. Wait for the check. All the while, listen to loud conversations of total strangers all around. Pay an order of magnitude more than the same food at home, and spend hours longer. Leave with a sore back.

I know I'm in the minority, but this just doesn't seem like fun to me.

 

[brewer12345]

Reading all these comments really makes me wonder that the main element of eating in a restaurant is the enjoyment of the social component. I mean, if I need to go to a store for something, or even the doctor for something unavoidable, then practicing distancing, wearing gloves/masks and taking all the precautions is not great but necessary and acceptable under the circumstances. But in restaurants, seeing the place half empty and seeing waiters like in a hospital cafeteria, as the previous poster says, just kills the fun.

Here is an interesting article from a restaurateur about the situation from their perspective, as well as an attempt to frame the big picture of the restaurant situation in the US: https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/14/opin...iracle-to-survive-the-pandemic-dey/index.html

The last really nice place I had dinner before the music stopped was a high end fish restaurant in New Orleans in December. I rarely go to places like that as I spent a lot of time in places like this earlier in life. It was a really good restaurant. What made it so? Very good fish was part of it, but a big part was the atmosphere, the excellent service, etc. You can replicate the food as takeout (sort of). The rest, not so much.

 

[unclemick]

There are others?

kolaches. The line was always long.

Heh heh heh - Where in Texas? My lips are sealed. But they do advertise.

 

[Beststash]

kolaches. The line was always long.

Yum, Yum - they have some good ones in La Grange and West....lots of "square headed dutchmen" in that area!!

 

[audreyh1]

Reading all these comments really makes me wonder that the main element of eating in a restaurant is the enjoyment of the social component. I mean, if I need to go to a store for something, or even the doctor for something unavoidable, then practicing distancing, wearing gloves/masks and taking all the precautions is not great but necessary and acceptable under the circumstances. But in restaurants, seeing the place half empty and seeing waiters like in a hospital cafeteria, as the previous poster says, just kills the fun.

Here is an interesting article from a restaurateur about the situation from their perspective, as well as an attempt to frame the big picture of the restaurant situation in the US: https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/14/opin...iracle-to-survive-the-pandemic-dey/index.html

Restaurants face calamitous gale winds on many fronts.

According to the research firm Datassential, as many as 68% of customers will avoid returning to restaurants at all, and 20% will be nervous when they do. Without a vaccine or universal program of testing, tracking and isolation, that rational fear will persist.

And most Americans remain uneasy about the moves to reopen, with 67% saying they would be uncomfortable going into a store and 78% saying they would be uncomfortable eating at a restaurant, according to a recent survey from The Washington Post and the University of Maryland.

Our customers can't eat with masks on, and we can't deliver plates while staying 6 feet away from them. Nor can we separate our employees in cramped kitchens, which are designed for compact efficiency and speed.

Honestly, I just don’t see how dine inside restaurants are going to work at all. Waiters going from customer to customer with same pair of gloves (among many other things)? No thanks.

Take-out OK. Eating takeout from counter pickup on patio/outdoor seating OK. I think those are workable.

It’s really unfortunate, but the restaurant business is going to be hit really hard with this virus just like tourism and large crowd venues are. This isn’t about “opening up” or not, this is just about living with an ongoing pandemic.

 

[Sunset]

I think that must be it. Personally, I don't really enjoy it. Probably because I'm anti-social. I'll eat out when it's convenient, and that's OK. But it's not something I look forward to.

Figure out what to wear. Drive somewhere. Fight for a parking space. Wait for a table. Be led to an uncomfortable chair. Wait for someone to show up to take the drink order. Wait again for them to take the food order. Wait for the food. Wait for the check. All the while, listen to loud conversations of total strangers all around. Pay an order of magnitude more than the same food at home, and spend hours longer. Leave with a sore back.

I know I'm in the minority, but this just doesn't seem like fun to me.

On the bright side, you don't have to cook or wash the dishes