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Checklist: Prepare to Welcome Guests After COVID-19

May 28, 2020 COVID-19, Featured, Food Safety, Restaurant Resources, Vetting PathSpot for Your Company

We’re all in need of some good news. New cases of COVID-19 are starting to decrease, which means your team can start thinking about opening doors to guests. Though businesses will reopen, it’s important to acknowledge that they’ll look dramatically different than they did before COVID-19. Customers will likely be wary of public spaces and have a higher demand for proper hygiene and food safety measures. Ensure you’re meeting these requirements by thinking about the suggestions below. If you want a PDF version of this list to print out or share, you can download it here.

1. Implement Social Distancing

Social distancing measures will still be in place long after businesses have the green light to reopen, so start thinking about what that may look like in your restaurant. Will you need to reduce the amount of seating in your dining room? Does it make sense to implement a reservation-only policy? Is there anything you can do to show your customers that your kitchen staff is also practicing proper protocols?

Photo by Macau Photo Agency on Unsplash

Photo by PathSpot

2. Retrain your Staff

Properly train your staff about the new norms of your establishment. Go over proper handwashing techniques, outline social distancing rules, and hang up resources they can reference whenever they need to.

3. Level up your Food Safety & Hygiene

When businesses are able to reopen dine-in services, customer expectations for food safety and hand hygiene will be elevated. You can implement obvious and effective hygiene measures to reassure customers that it’s safe to return to your restaurant. Tools and technology like the PathSpot hand scanner can effectively signal to your customers where your priorities lie. This device tracks and monitors hand washing frequency and effectiveness to detect harmful contaminants. By using the scanner, you’ll be able to confidently serve your guests, knowing your team’s hands are contaminant-free and safe to handle food. It’s going to be more important than ever before that you’re doing everything you can to ensure the safety of your staff and customers.

Are you interested in learning how PathSpot can help you prepare for reopening? Contact us here.

Photo by PathSpot

Photo by Cytonn Photography on Unsplash

4. Update your Menu

When cutting costs, make sure to factor in your menu. Consider trimming down your menu to focus on fan favorites with high margins.

5. Communicate, Communicate, Communicate

Communicating your efforts with your guests is going to be a crucial step to prepare for your reopening. Take the time to update your customers on your reopening date and hours of operations, and explain that you’ll (probably) be taking baby steps to get back to business as usual. More importantly, show your customers you’re meeting proper hygiene standards through visual cues, conversations and marketing channels. For example, PathSpot partners use “My hands are clean” pins to show guests they’re using technology to guarantee proper handwashing.

Photo by PathSpot

We’re thinking about you during these incredibly heavy times, but we will all get through this together. As going back to work becomes more and more tangible, it’s important that you plan for a different dining experience than you’ve been used to. Let us help you with that.

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COVID-19 Food Safety Updates for Restaurants

April 3, 2020 COVID-19, Food Safety, Non-featured, Restaurant Resources

To Our Foodservice Friends, We’re Here For You.

We know these are uncertain times as many teams (big and small) are forced to make heartwrenching decisions in order to weather this storm. During this time, we want to emphasize our unwavering support for you and your teams. We will be sharing this list of restaurant relief funds with our network, encouraging everyone who can to donate. We are proud to work in this industry where, even in tough times, restaurants continue to go above and beyond to support their communities.

Sharing Insights – Food Safety is Still in Our Hands

We know to limit the spread of COVID-19, it’s more important than ever to handwash effectively. We’ve collected data from scanning millions of hands, and the data shows common “hot spots” or areas that are frequently missed. Remind your employees to scrub under their fingernails, remove jewelry before working, and be mindful of these commonly missed spots! Want a free version of the below sign? Download a copy here.

Restaurant Dine-in Closures: The Transition to Delivery & Take-out

As of March 19th, most states have mandated the closure of all restaurant dine-in options. Our map below shows the most recent updates from each state. Nation’s Restaurant News reported that visits to QSR are up 11% nationally since the coronavirus outbreak. The closures are calling for dine-in restaurants to pivot to a similar model, employing delivery, curbside pickup, and take-out to drive business until dine-in options can resume.

Toast: How to Manage Your Restaurant During the Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Combating Customer Fear

Restaurant customers are more conscious of food safety practices than ever and have an increased level of fear surrounding food options. It’s critical to get the word out to customers that food safety is a top priority, especially during this time. Whether it be including messaging in your take-out packaging or publicizing your food safey technology on social media, communicating with customers will help build trust.

QSR Magazine: Coronavirus Crisis Communications for Restaurants: A Checklist

We Want to Help

For any PathSpot partners that must close all operations, we will pause billing during this time.
We’re working with our partners to communicate their commitment to hand hygiene to their customers, including sending “My Hands Are Clean” pins for delivery employees and window decals to highlight handwashing verified with PathSpot.
We want to share what we’ve learned from analyzing millions of handwashes with real-time detection – download the Hot Spots sign for your location(s).

Please let us know what else we can do to support you!

Coronavirus Updates from NRN to QSR Magazine

March 20, 2020 COVID-19, Handwashing, Non-featured

*Please note the numbers in this post were updated March 13th, 2020. The state of COVID-19 in the US has and will continue to dramatically evolve each day. We hope you find this snapshot in time helpful, and for the latest details, please check out more resources at pathspottech.com/resources/coronavirus.

Taking Action During a Pandemic

Operators throughout the food industry are looking for ways to protect their customers and team from COVID-19 and demonstrate their ongoing commitment to food safety and handwashing best practices. This week, PathSpot had the opportunity to help educate the industry on how to prepare for an outbreak— read more below.

Maintain Handwashing as Priority #1

QSR Magazine: Here’s How Your Brand Should Prepare for COVID-19

“‘We’ve analyzed millions of hand washes at restaurants across the country, and from that data, we’ve gone a little deeper.’ Contamination, Schindler says, can get stuck underneath jewelry, under fingernails, in the crevices of hands, and around nail polish.”

Use Tools to Monitor Critical Safety Practices

Nation’s Restaurant News: These 4 Tools Can Help Restaurants Combat Coronavirus

“New smart technologies and apps could bring your sanitation protocols to the next level during this epidemic.”

Align Motivation for Sick Workers to Stay Home

CNBC: Restaurants rethink paid sick-leave policies as coronavirus outbreak spreads

“As the number of COVID-19 cases in the United States rises, companies are reevaluating their sick-leave policies for hourly workers or implementing paid leave for quarantined employees.”

Communicate Efforts to Customers

Restaurant Business: What Should Restaurants Do During the Coronavirus Pandemic?

“Many operators are communicating calming messages to their customers, ensuring they understand that the restaurant is undertaking proper cleaning and hygiene procedures.” Many PathSpot partners, for example, are wearing “My Hands Are Clean” pins to show guests that they’re going above and beyond to prioritize handwashing.

Ensure Handwashing Compliance

We know handwashing is the most impactful way to prevent the spread of illness, but it’s hard to know for sure if it’s happening well (if at all). PathSpot verifies and monitors handwashing so you can assure your team and customers that you’re taking measures to verify food is handled with clean, contaminant-free hands.

Screen Shot 2020-03-19 at 2.53.17 PM.png — The PathSpot hand scanner detects fecal contamination that transmits illness. Employees scan hands to check for contamination with a result in 2 seconds. Real-time alerts and a live data dashboard give managers the visibility they need to ensure frequent, effective handwashing and prevent the spread of illness.

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