50% seating capacity in restaurants set under ‘new normal’ — DOT

MANILA, Philippines — Restaurants will have 50 percent seating capacity once the establishments resume dine-in operations during the “new normal,” the Department of Tourism (DOT) said on Thursday.

In a statement, the tourism department issued memorandum circular 2020-004 which laid out health protocols for DOT-accredited restaurants for customers, management, and employees.

Under the guidelines, DOT said, “maximum customer capacity will be reduced to 50 percent of the restaurant’s seating or venue capacity.”

The department also ordered restaurants to provide personal food safety apparel and training, and annual check-ups for their employees.

Restaurants must also provide a “comprehensive list of food safety and conduct standards, and disinfection and sanitation protocols for different areas, furniture, wares, and surfaces within the restaurant, which employees are expected to follow.”

Management of restaurants is also encouraged to install an alarm system that will alert their workers to observe “proper handwashing every 20 minutes, before and after meals, before wearing gloves and touching food or food-contact surfaces.”

Restaurants should also provide disinfectant alcohol or hand sanitizers if there are no soap and water for customers and employees.

DOT also required customers to “wear masks, accomplish health declaration forms, undergo temperature checks, and practice proper handwashing,  physical distancing inside the restaurants.

Customers are also required to provide their personal information such as names and contact details in a log sheet at the restaurant for contact tracing.

The guidelines also included “pick-up or take-away zones for customers, and improvements to the establishment’s table and seating arrangement, customer queueing, order-taking, and payment systems.”

The tourism department also encouraged restaurants to shift to cashless transactions.

For dine-in operations, buffets and salad bars are not allowed while in-house play areas, libraries, karaoke machines, and similar entertainment activities are also suspended.

/MUF