How To Keep Your Restaurant Afloat During Covid: Ken Loeb Explains
Restaurant owners have been hit hard during COVID-19, and Ken Loeb is sharing his top tips for keeping restaurants running even when it’s impossible to tell what the next day will bring.
First, Ken Loeb recommends helping your customers to see your restaurant as a break from the craziness of every day life right now. When customers come into your restaurant, they should see your staff taking every possible precaution to keep them safe. From cleaning tables to washing hands regularly, make it clear to your customers that you’re following all regulations necessary to ensure a safe and pleasant dining experience.
You may want to consider switching up the floor plan inside your restaurant, according to Ken Loeb. While your tables may already meet the standard six feet between patrons requirement, going the extra mile can help customers feel even better about dining in. This may mean that there are fewer tables available within your restaurant. If you’ve thought about adding outdoor or sidewalk dining to your space, this may be the time to do so.
Ken Loeb also recommends preparing for the worst. While you hope that no customers attempts to dine at your restaurant when they aren’t feeling well, you need to prepare for the unexpected. Remember, if this happens, a customer could have become ill suddenly — they may not have known they were symptomatic before entering your restaurant. Ken Loeb recommends training waitstaff on what to do if a customer needs to leave the restaurant quickly.
Getting creative with your promotions is important right now, according to Ken Loeb. A work from home special can be a popular option, where you offer delivery deals for lunch for people stuck on Zoom meetings or homeschooling. You may also consider offering online cooking classes, teaching your customers how to make some of their favorite dishes from your restaurant in the comfort of their own kitchen. Ken Loeb encourages restaurant owners to maximize their creativity, and use this time as an opportunity to try ideas that may have been too time consuming in the past.
While you usually are working against other restaurants in your area to ensure that you’re staying ahead of the competition, this may be a time to come together, according to Ken Loeb. Sharing kitchen staff, delivery drivers, or coming together to offer joint specials can be a great way too boost your business. In these difficult times, restaurants are in this together. Helping diners in your area feel safe when eating out benefits everyone.
Originally published at https://kenloeb.com on September 29, 2020.