Indy Restaurants in Pandemic Recovery
                                                                                                                                                                                                                          By: Hope Amor, Contributor writer

Indianapolis restaurants will be back in full-force beginning July 4th.  Source: ​Indiana.gov

​The time has finally come. As Hoosiers begin to steadily creep back into society following Governor Holcomb’s “Back on Track Indiana” 5-stage COVID-19 recovery plan (a portion pictured above), businesses will begin making up for lost time. One sector of the economy that has been hit undeniably hard is local food establishments.  
 
Delivery services such as Uber Eats, Grubhub and DoorDash have kept many restaurants afloat during this time of crisis. What have Indiana residents ordered most during the pandemic? The answer may or may not surprise you: waffle fries (thedailymeal.com). For more localized restaurants with no ties to the aforementioned delivery services (including the beloved Rathskeller Restaurant), curbside pick-up/carry-out orders have been the sole form of income. An Indy fan favorite (Ambrosia) in their desperate attempt to pull hungry customers off the street is pictured below.

Photo: Robert Scheer, Indy Star 

​Moving Forward 
In a time of crisis, creativity is king. The Dunlap Cafe in Cincinnati, for example, is serving “adult happy meals” complete with alcoholic beverages. Indy’s Patachou, Inc. has been creative in their approach to better serve the community. They have put more resources toward creating reheatable meals and distributing them to community partners during this trying time, ensuring no one goes hungry.
  
To guide restaurant owners’ (and others’) next steps, the Indiana Restaurant & Lodging Association (IRLA) and health officials--following the lead of the National Restaurant Association and the Food and Drug Administration--have unveiled the Hoosier Hospitality Promise. Local restaurants, including Mimi Blue, have proudly proclaimed their commitment to the Promise. In this plan is a set of expectations for restaurants as well as their patrons, including “all tables and chairs will be cleaned and sanitized after every use,” and “if you have been exposed to COVID-19 recently...please help us keep everyone safe by using our contactless delivery options” (inrla.org).  

Photo:dunlapcafe.com 

---

Hope Amor

Personal Experience 
Though I was hesitant to do so, I went to an eat-in restaurant for the first time in 2 months this week at the prompting of my father. When we walked into the front door, he shouted “finally, we’re free!” To my secondhand embarrassment and surprise, a table-full of people joined in the impromptu celebration. We had masks and hand sanitizer; as did the wait staff and manager. Everything provided, including menus, were single-use and needed to be picked up from a tray by us. At the bar, all stools were 6 feet apart and there was a smattering of people sitting at tables with plenty of room between them. Though it was nice to feel a sense of normalcy again, we never really got comfortable. We have a long way to go until being in crowded public spaces-particularly restaurants- feels safe again, but in time the revitalizing group experiences we used to take for granted will return. ​