In an effort to combat the pandemic – the dreaded Corona virus (Covid-19), all of us have lost half the year sitting at home. If that is not sad enough, foodies longing to go out and eat is pathetic.
Worried about ordering food from restaurants, cos the next door aunty scared you about the delivery guys? Food delivery partners have aggressively taken to follow and promote safety measures including temperature tests for everyone every day, rider hand wash, completely sanitized kitchen, no-contact delivery, and more.. They don’t shy away from promoting restaurants with safety standards, not theft or murder, but safe from the Corona viral infection.
The food industry, too, is experiencing significant changes in the way it operates. Safety assurance and hygiene have become more important than ever, with customers being sceptical to order food. No one’s to blame (except COVID-19 of course), the present situation demands us to keep safety standards as the highest priority. And the restaurants and the delivery partners like Zomato, Swiggy, etc. are proactively working on initiatives that will help restore the customer’s confidence in them.
Log on to Swiggy or Zomato today to find a list of restaurants that are safe to order from along with the list all the safety measures they take. Moreover, they have also started selling ofo help the public as they need not get out buying essentials.
You are still apprehensive and of course its understandable. To put you at ease, here are a few policies followed by the restaurants and the delivery partners:
- Contactless Delivery – Any order which is pre-paid for (which is recommended strongly by all outlets), will be left on a clean surface outside the customer’s house, eliminating the need to get in contact with the delivery person. All delivery apps are updated to enable this option!
- Contactless Dining – For those of you who want to experience the ambiance of the outside world, here is a full on tech experience. Right from contactless menu (scan a QR code to explore the menu), to contactless ordering (on the app, with no contact with the waiter), to finally paying via the app, helps maintain hygiene by not touching products used by the other guests. Social distancing or have we become slaves to the bots? This is a much quicker experience and is also an economical step for the hotel industry.
- Restaurant Safety Practices – Restaurants are also stepping up and judiciously following the protocols laid by the WHO:
- Frequent sanitation of the premises, once in every 4 hours
- Display of sanitizers at all around the restaurant
- Staff is provided with 3-ply face masks
- Temperature check for all employees and advising rest at home for those with temperatures greater than 99.1 F
- Ensure food hygiene by thoroughly cleaning meat and vegetables
- Regularly checking staff for symptoms
- Educating staff about the precautions and creating awareness
- Restaurants following these guidelines are promoted as having the best safety standards on Swiggy and Zomato (that’s the list we (should) order from yay!)
4. Delivery Person Awareness – Delivery partners are continually training their staff in the best practices of hygiene and are being advised to self-quarantine in case of mild symptoms. Social distancing amongst the delivery personnel is strictly monitored.
- Deep learning algorithms in place – An algorithm is built by Swiggy to monitor its delivery personnel and provide real-time information to its customers! Restaurants can now reveal their hygiene records on food delivery apps, like Zomato, to aid in an informed decision making by the customer.
Wait, It doesn’t end there!
- Every a delivery person uploads a picture wearing a mask and receives an order only if they are wearing one
- Delivery partners reach the restaurant just in time when the food is ready for pick up to avoid waiting and crowding at the restaurant
- The delivery person is assigned by their proximity to the restaurant, reducing the wait time or travel time
Even ten years ago, this would have been impossible, right? We are all working from home with ease, always connected to people through the internet or mobile, ordering food that’s taken care of well and delivered at our doorstop (Kudos to the heroes from Swiggy and Zomato), In fact, even the nearby store (annachi kada as we call it lovingly) is taking online / WhatsApp orders and lets you pay through Google Pay!!
Swiggy, Zomato and other partners are softening the blow this pandemic has thrown at us! Especially, by immediately starting groceries in their app, made a big service to your customers who were worried about hygiene and safety. So all you foodies out there – why wait for the lock-down to end to cherish your favorite dish!