I recently read an article saying there will be massive changes in Restaurants and how we receive food in a restaurant due to Covid 19. Alot of big franchise restaurants around me gave up their delivery drivers and started using Uber eats, Skip the Dishes and a few other services back in the beginning of the Covid disaster. I refused to order food from any restaurant that used those new delivery options. I didn't like that Uber/SkipTD and more were charging crazy prices for delivery and adding 20% service charge on the food order also from the restaurant making most big restaurants jack up prices and basically rob the average persons money.
During this crazy time ... I wanted to support my small local Italian restaurant or the local Chinese food, Thai food or Sub shop I've been ordering from for years. These places all kept their regular delivery people and these places have never charged delivery fees and when Covid hit ... they never charged delivery even then.
Also ... my my local restaurants I used did
NOT raise their prices for their food to cover the costs using a service like Skip the dishes and uber.
I always tipped my regular delivery guys and gals well and was happy to see them still working and keeping a job during this crazy time and keeping these local business alive. The restaurants I used would tell me if I wanted contactless delivery I could charge my order and the delivery person would leave it on the porch and call me from the driveway to make sure I got my order.
Still ... I wanted to give a decent tip to my regulars and make sure they were covered. So I didn't do contactless delivery. I just went to the door with mask on and was wrapped head to toe in saran wrap.
Just like I did before Covid ... cause I like to feel like I'm a submarine sandwich in plastic.
The article I read said there will be No More Free Refills at the Soda Fountains in places like McDonalds with your own plastic/paper cups, they don't want your used cup that has touched your mouth near the taps where you get your pop/ice because other people will also be refilling at the fountain with their used cups. Soda fountains will be behind the counter. So ... no free refills with a fresh new cup.
No water or ice served to you in a regular sit down setting at a table anymore ... because the servers should not refill a glass that has been drank out of because its touched your mouth because the lip of the jug will be in contact with many used glasses.
WHAT?
In many cases people will be given bottles of water at the table ... this I want to see happen in a high class restaurant where you are paying $150 and up for dinner for you and your date.
"Yes, I'd like to order the lobster bisque and caesar salad to start with and a lovely bottle of Chateaux Pou Pou 1936, oh and can you give me another plastic bottle of no name water from No frills? What do you mean I can't have the bottle of water on ice? I want it bloody well COLD!"
They say Salt & Pepper shakers as well as napkin holders will not be on the tables due to contamination from many peoples hands touching them. So they will hand you some paper napkins when you ask for them or when they give you your food at the table and then you will ask for little paper packets of salt and pepper? This means forget Parmesan cheese or pepper corns in the shake jars as well? No more soy sauce or fish sauce or hot sauce at the tables?
It also means NO KETCHUP bottles on your tables either. You will receive foil squeeze packets. Mmmm ... yay.
"HEY WAITER ... this isn't HEINZ ketchup ... this is a no name foil packet of tomato sauce .... I want a bottle of Heinz ketchup!" The waiter will tell you the bottle ketchup you use to see on the table was a no name brand of tomato sauce also ... they refilled the bottles every other day from big ole cans that were made in China or India or somewhere and no way are they a Heinz or French's brand name so shut up and use your crappy foil squeeze pack of tomato crap and quit bugging me.
Some sit down restaurants would have a paper place mat set at tables with a plate and cutlery wrapped in paper napkins when you sat down. NO MORE ... due to covid. It will stop this due to fear or spray from people talking sneezing coughing laughing or grubby covid hands contaminating place settings which have to be picked up and re-washed when you get your food on a different plate anyways. NICE ... I'm waiting for a waiter or waitress bringing me my plate of steak and baked potato and will they hand me a plastic wrapped fork and knife and spoon for me to use to eat with?
Will I not get real flat ware made of metal anymore?
I suppose Bottomless cups of coffee will also be a thing of the past .... unless they keep giving you a fresh cup to drink the bottomless cup of coffee from ... the restaurant will be overusing cups in massive amounts to keep someone drinking numerous cups of coffee when they've come in and had an inexpensive breakfast or just an order of toast and coffee. It doesn't add up cost wise.
I'm wondering if we will have to pay a service fee to have the table sterilized after we leave, even though other diners are 6 feet away from where I will eat. Will the clean staff charge me to use the washroom and then sterilize it after I use it.
Will an alarm ring when I leave the washroom with a huge red flashing light and an arrow flash over my head telling everyone in the restaurant I didn't wash my hands properly after I used the loo?
God I want my old life back .... thank you for reading my latest rant. :biggrin5: