Restaurant Industry-May 12th

Georgia Restaurants: Impact on the economy

• 18,403 eating and drinking locations in 2018
• 22.9B Estimated sales in 2018
• 488,400 restaurant and foodservice jobs in Georgia in 2019 (11% of the state)
• Every dollar spent in the table service segment contributes $1.97 to the state economy.

U.S. Reservation Numbers

Restaurants at this time are slowly on the rise since the coronavirus plunged reservation numbers to virtually zero. From the 18th of March to the 1st of May, reservations in the united states were down to zero according to Open Table. Since then, reservations numbers have been slowly increasing. While still low (down approximately 93% from last year) they are showing signs that the industry is recovering.

G.A. Reservation Numbers

Compared to the country, Georgia has been much quicker to reopen restaurants and is showing a faster reservation growth. By May 13th 20% of the restaurants that take reservations had re-opened, with the amount of reservations created being 10% higher (year-over-year) than the country.

Georgia Restaurant Opening Procedures

Gov. Kemp signed an executive order on April 27th that outlined that procedures restaurants can take to reopen. These procedures include:

• No more than 10 patrons per 500 square feet are allowed inside at once.
• All employees are required to wear masks at all times.
• Employers must screen and evaluate workers who exhibit signs of illness, such as a fever over 100.4 degrees and a cough or shortness of breath.
• Restaurants must post signs that say no one with symptoms of COVID-19 can enter.
• Party size is limited to no more than 6 per table.
• Salad bars and buffets are no longer allowed.
• Restaurants must use pre-rolled silverware.
• Items must be removed from self-service drink, condiment, utensil and tableware stations and have workers provide those items to patrons.
• Patrons must be kept separated while waiting to be seated through floor markings or waiting in cars.
• Workers who show signs of illness can’t come in to work. Employees who have COVID-19 must self-isolate for 7 days and be fever-free and symptom-free for 3 days before coming back to work.
• Employers must train employees on the importance of frequent handwashing, use of hand sanitizers and avoiding touching their faces.

Sources and Additional Reading

State of the Industry

All Atlanta restaurants, gyms, bars closed due to coronavirus

Proclamation on Declaring a National Emergency Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak

Georgia Governor Is Preparing an Order For Residents to ‘Shelter in Place’

Governor Kemp Issues Shelter in Place Order

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp Releases Requirement Guidelines for Restaurants to Reopen Dining Rooms on Monday, April 27, 2020

A Timeline of Georgia’s Restaurant Reopening

Photo of an undetermined Georgia Tech home game during the 1918 college football season. That's when the sport was hit by the Spanish flu and the end of World War I.

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