Update (March 15, 2020): NYC Mayor de Blasio finally has mandated that all restaurants and bars in New York State discontinue service, except for delivery and takeout. This is a very uncertain time globally, so this advice is based on the current state of matters. For the most up-to-date guidance, please refer to the CDC, WHO, or your local government channels. Amidst the chaos of a very real pandemic, one thing is clear – local businesses stand to lose a lot from the recommended practices of social distancing, blanket work-from-home policies, and self-quarantine; dine-in is “down as much as 75%” according to Seamless. Unlike many technology companies, restaurant and bar employees cannot simply work from home. Adding to the confusion is that the responses from national and state governments have been inconsistent, causing a lot of confusion for both business owners and patrons. Among the responses I’ve seen on Instagram and Facebook: restaurants touting their anti-bacterial hand gel supply; bars only offering table service to maintain a safe distance between customers; threatening to refuse service to anyone who exhibits symptoms of sickness; and worst of all, no response at all. Personally, I feel it’s irresponsible to rely on business owners to create their own policies (after all, COVID-19 can be contagious without any physical symptoms for up to two weeks). Conducting business as usual may encourage folks to continue going out, against the counsel of health policy officials. With that said, I’ve stayed abreast of how the restaurant industry is handling this (via articles, podcasts, and social media). And below are what I consider the most helpful steps and precautions you can take to ensure the safety of everyone you come in contact with, and hopefully navigate the survival of your business during this health crisis.

1) Follow official guidelines.

I cannot stress this enough. If your local government says you shouldn’t fill your venue to capacity, then don’t. If they say to close your shop, then shut it down. For instance, the mandate from the NYC government is to limit restaurant/bar capacity to half (note: this post will mostly use NYC examples as they are most top of mind for me). In other regions like Illinois, all restaurants and bars will be closed through the month of March. When in doubt, err on the side of caution. There are many restaurateurs urging NYC Mayor de Blasio to close all restaurants/bars (a stance I agree with). It’s a tough position to be in – people’s livelihoods are on the line, but so are their lives.