I think in general the community is largely unaware of the many steps restaurants take in normal times to safeguard the public. Those rags you see the buss teams using to wipe down the tables? They’re covered with a sanitizing fluid. Have you ever been seated at a table that’s still damp? That’s not carelessness on the busser’s part, you got sat before the table had a chance to air dry. There are many other steps we take in regular times to keep the public safe.
But these aren’t regular times.
In the last week Town has implemented a new ordering system for pickup and delivery. We did this for two reasons. We think it simplifies communication and order flow, but we also wanted to implement contactless delivery and pickup. What this means is that starting tonight, when you come to Town to pick up your order you have a choice. We’ve created a barrier inside that keeps you at least 6 feet from our staff and we’re preparing your food so we’re sure it’s ready at the time you’ve chosen to arrive. (There may be a few exceptions, but this is the norm).
Please don’t arrive early!
If you choose to stay in your car you can call us at (818) 248 1881 and let us know where you’re parked and what kind of car you have and we’ll bring the food out to you and put it in your back seat, or trunk, or wherever you want it.
We’re trying to get more of you to use the online ordering environment through townkitchenandgrill.com so you can order and pay ahead of time which negates the need to pass a credit card in the store. (Another potential source of spread). Note that when you do pay with a credit card you’ll be asked to place it on a damp cloth covered with sanitizer. Our team will lift it from here and swipe it and then put it back on the cloth for you to pick up. The pen you use to sign the slip? Wiped down after every use. The tray the paper is on? Same thing. (we might be a bit obsessed with this stuff).
What we’re doing in the kitchen to keep food preparation safe.
First, Town’s kitchen is what is referred to in our business as a quiet kitchen. That means that for the most part the team in the kitchen doesn’t talk. The chef lets us know what he needs and the cook responsible for that component or dish simply says, “heard.” There is very, very little banter even during prep time. This dramatically reduces the possibility of spread through respiratory droplets. (It also brings a Zenlike quality to cutting 20 lbs of new potatoes!) Nowadays in addition to all of this, we’re wearing masks. That’s incredibly uncomfortable in a hot kitchen, but the team gets the importance and they are respectful of the rule.
The team out front talks, but they’re all keeping safe distances, even from you (please honor the safety barrier we’ve got in place) and wearing masks. And note the number of sanitizing rags that have been placed around the restaurant. Frankly this stuff works better than most of the consumer brands and we wipe down every surface several times per night. The front of house team has been taught to sanitize their hands before touching everything that goes out, every time. The bags we hand you come from freshly sanitized hands.
We don’t require gloves because in our experience people get sloppy with gloves. They don’t change them as often as they should. It’s hard to get them on and off. They also require sanitizing, etc. The cooks are taking the same steps in preparation, and any food served raw (salads, etc) require extra steps to ensure safety.
Even with all of this, any employee exhibiting any symptoms at all, even if they’re just unusually tired, is being required to stay home. They take your health seriously and they’re taking this seriously as well. The team is on call so if one person can’t make it in, others can.
So you see, Town is doing its best not just to respond to your interest in our food (for which we are eternally grateful) but also to safeguard our local “family” of diners. We’re going to stay open the whole way through if we can, and we’re going to do our best to serve you in every conceivable way…
By the way, look forward today to a couple of fun announcements about the Town Bodega (groceries that you can get with your order), as well as all of the new drink options. And yes, for everyone who’s been asking, you’ll be able to order desserts as well.