New Delhi: No entry without a mask, following of social-distancing norms, safety screen guards and disposable menu cards were among the key features as restaurants reopened in the national capital after a two-month gap, but the footfall was considerably low.
However, a sizable number of restaurants kept their shutters down due to a shortage of labour and timing of operations.
The Delhi government, in an order on Sunday, allowed restaurants to start their operations from Monday.
At the Saravana Bhavan restaurant in central Delhi, patrons will have to wear a mask, sanitise their hands. The restaurant also has disposable menu cards.
"Only two people will be accommodated on a table which had the capacity of four. They also have to sit maintaining sufficient distance," said E Lokesh Kumar, the shift in-charge.
He added that the staff are using gloves besides the mandatory face mask. The popular south Indian eating joint has a minimum waiting time of 30 minutes, but there were very few customers at noon.
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"We have just started and many of our customers may not be aware that we are open," Kumar said.
At KFC, which also started its dine-in services, entry without a mask was not permitted and the security guard checked the body temperature with a thermal screening device.
To ensure social distancing, the eating joint allowed only two people per table. They have also made marks on the seats where sitting will be prohibited.
Markings were also made to ensure that people maintain distance while standing in queue for paying money and collecting their orders.
"We have modified the restaurant designs to reinforce social distancing, trained team members according to new norms and are implementing measures like reduced seating to 50 per cent or less, distanced seating arrangements, demarcated waiting spots in the queues, controlled customer inflow.
"We are operating on a limited menu, which means we can operate with a smaller team, even in the kitchen, and the team members can maintain all norms of social distancing," said Moksh Chopra, chief marketing officer, KFC India.
Gaurav Burman, director, Burman Hospitality (Taco Bell's Master Franchise partner in India) said they will be operating with an optimal crew size to ensure that all social distancing protocols are maintained within our restaurants.
"All employees have been trained to follow social distancing as well as hygiene protocols. In fact, Taco Bell will also have a hygiene manager across restaurants who is responsible for maintaining hygiene and sanitation measures for both employees as well as customers.
"We will place safety screen guards at the counters to enable distance between employees and customers, with stickers on each of the screen guards calling out our hygiene best practices," he said.
The Select Citywalk in Saket also opened their food court, although only one restaurant Saravana Bhavan, and a couple of smaller outlets like juice vends have started operations.
"There is proper markings at counters and cash registers to stop crowding, and we also have a special self-isolation room, in case of suspected positive cases.
"We are also looking to introduce contactless ordering for visitors to ensure social distancing," the spokesperson said.
(PTI report)
