By John Rivers, Contributor

COVID-19 changed the game for many in restaurants. From closing dining rooms and serving customers digitally, to learning how to function at a lower capacity and training employees on entirely new safety protocols, the service industry has learned and evolved quite a bit since the start of 2020.

As you approach your reopening date post-shutdown, consider these five tips to keep your restaurant running efficiently, successfully, and safely.

Limit Touchpoints Between Restaurant Staff & Guests

When planning your reopening, make sure you consider every point at which your staff and customers have previously come into contact with each other. Is there a way to limit this?

Try keeping six feet between tables on the floor, or between barstools, and make sure you train your serving staff on how to approach a new table with proper distance.

Instead of grabbing drinks from the bar or plates from the line, have your bartenders and cooks place items for the whole table on a tray to limit unnecessary handling. If you’d like to be extra safe, have one host serve as a designated door opener for guests.

Have Your Restaurant Go Digital

With so much new technology at our fingertips, it’s easy to utilize digital tools to help prevent spreading the virus on objects like menus and credit cards. Look into printing QR codes that lead customers to your online menu and placing them at each table. There are also online payment methods you can utilize to avoid handling credit cards. Look for ways to limit the handling of guests’ personal items as much as possible and be sure to clean down whatever they do touch ASAP.

Stock Up on Sanitation Supplies

Hand sanitizer, disinfectant, paper towels and face masks are essential if you’re planning to reopen your restaurant post-shutdown. Since you’ll be serving food and drinks, it’s especially important to follow the guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and clean and disinfect all surfaces often throughout the day.

To help your customers see that you’re doing everything you can to ensure a safe and healthy experience, make sure you display your extra cleaning efforts with signs, social media posts, emails, and updates on your website. This will help build trust and reassure them that you are following the CDC’s recommendations and other commercial disinfecting tips for COVID-19.

Have Designated Staff Monitor Your Restaurant Capacity at the Door

You may find that your post-shutdown needs are different than they were before COVID-19. For instance, it may be helpful to have one member of your team to monitor your capacity. This can help streamline your wait times and keep everyone on staff organized.

It can also help limit the spread of germs by having one member of your team at the entry at all times. They can open and close the door for customers and employees, eliminating the need for so many people to touch the door on their way in and out. They can also alert guests about to enter when you’re at capacity.

In fact, you may need to rethink your entire wait list policy and service to better align with the post-COVID world.

Promote Your Restaurant’s To-Go Ordering

One of the most helpful post-shutdown resources restaurants have been able to utilize is to-go ordering, mobile restaurant delivery, and curbside pickup. Even once you’re able to open your doors, it may be helpful to promote your to-go ordering service to prevent the spread of the virus and to keep your restaurant at the recommended capacity.

Some restaurants manage everything on a mobile app, and others just take call-in orders to minimize customers’ time in the store. Choose whatever option works best for you and your team, and your restaurant will be up and running in no time.