• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Skip to navigation
Close Ad

The Spoon

Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

  • Home
  • Podcasts
  • Events
  • Newsletter
  • Connect
    • Custom Events
    • Slack
    • RSS
    • Send us a Tip
  • Advertise
  • Consulting
  • About
The Spoon
  • Home
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Events
  • Advertise
  • About

Coronavirus

The Spoon team is working hard to bring you the latest on the impact of COVID-19. Bookmark this page for our full archive on the pandemic and how the food industry is embracing innovation to fight back.

On April 6th, The Spoon had a full day virtual summit on COVID-19 strategies for food & restaurants. You can watch all the sessions from our virtual strategy summit here.

You can also check out this COVID-19 resource page for food and restaurant industry.

March 18, 2020

The Food Tech Show: Spoon Editor Lockdown Edition

With the exception of Jenn Marston, all the Spoon editors are located in the Seattle area, where there’s been a lockdown order on pretty much every type of social gathering place and restaurant because of COVID-19.

And while we don’t have mandatory shelter-in-place orders, our state governor has strongly suggested we all do so (with good reason!).

Needless to say, with our editor team all sheltering in place (including Jenn in Tennessee), we couldn’t help but talk about the rapidly unfolding changes coronavirus is bringing not only to our own lives, but the impact on the world or food, restaurants and more.

Like most of you, our world’s have been turned upside down, both in terms of our own jobs and our personal lives. We are continuing to cover this rapidly changing situation and want to hear from you. If you have a food or foodtech related story about how COVID is changing the world order, send us an email at tips@thespoon.tech.

Before I go, keep an eye out for another podcast tomorrow where I talk with the always-innovative chef Eric Rivera on how he is adapting his restaurant business to our new shared reality.

As always, you can listen to the Food Tech Show on Apple podcasts, Spotify or download direct to your device. You can also just click play below. Thanks for listening.

Audio Player
http://media.adknit.com/a/1/33/smart-kitchen-show/nyrn38.3-2.mp3
00:00
00:00
00:00
Use Up/Down Arrow keys to increase or decrease volume.

March 18, 2020

I Visited the Canlis Seattle Pop-Up and Honestly I Feel Conflicted

Even before Seattle, along with many other regions, announced the forced closure of restaurants and bars, one of the city’s most well-known establishments was already a few steps ahead.

Canlis, a James Beard Award-winning restaurant known for its high-end food and even higher-end prices, announced last week, before the mandated restaurant closures, that it would be shuttering its dining room and transitioning to a to-go-only menu. Beginning today Canlis is offering takeout-only breakfast via The Bagel Shed from 8am-11am; pickup lunch via Drive on Thru from 11am-6pm; and a “Family Meal” delivery on weekday evenings.

Since I live only a few miles from Canlis I decided to swing by this morning to see how the acclaimed restaurant is navigating this transition. My first inkling that I might have gotten more than I bargained for is when I arrived just after 8am to see the cars backed up for blocks, all idling as they waited for the doors to open. Thinking walk-up might be easier (and more environmentally friendly) I parked nearby and walked up to the restaurant, where I was greeted with a very long line of individuals, all drawn to Canlis to get their bagels and see what all the fuss is about.

The line waiting to get their bagels at Canlis’ Bagel Shop. [Photo: Catherine Lamb]

In a time when we’re all supposed to be social distancing and keeping six feet apart, it was a little unnerving to see so many people out of the house and waiting so close together in a line (though, admittedly, I was one of them). At first people did keep a solid amount of space between each group, but as more folks arrived the line squished. However, we were outside, so maybe people were more willing to take a risk in the fresh air.

I got in line around 8:30am and reached the front to place my order in 45 minutes. That’s a lot of time to take off of work just to grab a bagel sandwich. From the people I spoke with, everyone who was waiting for breakfast was working from home and looking for a) an excuse to get out of the house, and b) an opportunity to try food from Canlis, a dining experience that’s typically beyond their budget.

That said, Canlis’ Bagel Shop is not cheap. The menu is also pretty limited. You have the option of buying half a dozen bagels and one of three schmears, or getting a breakfast sandwich. You can’t get an individual bagel with schmear, butter, etc. Since there’s only one of me I opted for the breakfast sandwich (no sausage). That came out to just under $9, which has an automatic tip built in.

When I was in line I chatted with a Canlis staff member who told me that the day before, when they launched the Drive-Thru Only lunch option, they’d sold 1,000 burgers. He expected they would sell just as many for the rest of the pop-up.

The bagel sandwich from Canlis’ pop-up [Photo: Catherine Lamb]

So how was the bagel? Honestly… just fine. As someone who lived in New York I’ll admit I’m a bit of a bagel snob, but if I’m shelling out almost $9 for a breakfast sandwich I had to wait 45 minutes in the cold for from a world-renowned restaurant I’m expecting my mind to be blown. The egg was perfectly cooked (look at that yolk ooze) and the American-style cheese melted perfectly. The bagel itself had a pleasant chew but was very pale on the outside — it lacked that mahogany, crackly exterior of a well-cooked bagel. The everything topping was also quite sparse.

I left Canlis at 9:15am, bagel in hand, just as the staff had just announced that the Bagel Shop had sold out. It was meant to last until 11am. Canlis may be a well-oiled machine when it comes to innovative dining or excellent service, but it seems like even they are not immune to the difficulties of pivoting over to takeout- and delivery-only. And if that’s true, how are restaurants with fewer resources supposed to navigate this tough time?

Cars lined up to pick up their to-go bagels. [Photo: Catherine Lamb]

Overall, my visit to the Canlis Bagel Shop pop-up was a pleasant excuse to leave my house and support a local restaurant. But I don’t think that Canlis is the restaurant I should be choosing to support. All restaurants, bars, and cafés are struggling as coronavirus restrictions force them to pivot to takeout or delivery-only. Smaller establishments might not have the capacity to make that shift and be forced to shut down altogether. Those are the places that need my dollars. Not Canlis.

It’s hard to fault Canlis. Like anywhere else, the restaurant is just trying to figure out creative ways to stay alive and keep its staff employed. But with such a strong reputation and storied legacy, Canlis is at far less risk of going under than, say, my neighborhood coffee shop. It’s frustrating to see so many folks flocking to buy overpriced takeaway meals (and wait for them) when some of my favorite local spots might not be able to weather the storm.

Next time, I’ll choose to support a restaurant that needs my patronage a little bit more. And doesn’t require me to stand outside for 45 minutes in the cold, and potentially risk contaminating or catching something from someone standing nearby.

If you’re looking to do the same, consider checking which of your favorite restaurants are offering takeout, or even try to buy a gift card to keep them afloat through this tough time. We’ve got this.

March 17, 2020

Online Grocer Farmstead Seeing 70 Percent Growth, Doubling Headcount to Keep Up

Farmstead has suddenly found itself on the front lines of the COVID-19 epidemic. The online grocer is based and delivers only in the Bay Area, where a shelter in place order was recently put into effect. As a result a lot of people are ordering food online and Farmstead, which has been around for a couple of years, now finds itself struggling to keep up with demand.

I spoke with Pradeep Elankumaran, Farmstead Co-Founder and CEO this morning, and he told me that back in normal non-coronavirus times, his company had at best 10 to 12 percent week over week growth. Three weeks ago, when the severity of the situation started settling in, that number jumped to 40 percent week over week growth. The following week was 50 percent wee/week growth over that. In the third week of the, should we call it a “panic?”, Farmstead’s week/week growth was 70 percent.

That is a lot of growth in a very short amount of time. Farmstead is currently doubling its headcount of pick-and-pack workers and delivery drivers to keep up, going from 70 workers to 140.

Farmstead’s hook has always been its AI-powered inventory management. The company builds microhub distribution centers in neighborhoods and uses its algorithms to make sure each one has just enough stock: not too much so that some goes to waste, and not so little that orders can’t be fulfilled.

Elankumaran said that even with the spike in demand, his software has been mostly effective at adapting and managing the situation. He attributes that success to a couple of key parameters that go into its algorithm. First, when you order from Farmstead, you don’t know if an item is out of stock until after you click on it (other online grocers will grey out an item when it’s gone so you can’t even click). While this is a wasted click for the consumer, it gives Farmstead more data on what consumers actually want, which allows the company to continue to feed its system.

Second, Elankumaran said that the sell by date for every item in the store is listed. That way they know how long each item they have will last and can prioritize distribution accordingly.

Farmstead’s system can’t totally prevent items being out of stock. During the first week of the outbreak, it sold out of pasta, for example. But because Farmstead knew everything people were trying to buy (even if they couldn’t) and how long that item lasts, they were able to adjust accordingly for the subsequent weeks.

Another side effect of the COVID-19 shopping, Elankumaran said, was that people are buying more fresh produce online through Farmstead. Buying fruits and vegetables online was something people typically didn’t do as they like to be in the store to look at and touch items before buying them. But when you are on lockdown, any safe port in a storm and all that. Plus, people may be waking up to the fact that between store workers and other shoppers, each piece of fruit could be touched by a lot of people while sitting at the store.

The fact that Farmstead doesn’t have an actual store that’s open to the public could also benefit the company. It’s a warehouse so the only people touching your food are the workers there, which is something Farmstead can exert greater control over.

As we’ve talked about before, COVID-19 is forcing new behaviors across the meal journey. While sudden demand is putting a strain on Farmstead and other grocery delivery services, these companies will adapt, and presumably work out the wrinkles in order to stay alive, and perhaps create a new normal in the way people shop for food.

March 17, 2020

Uber Eats Waives Delivery Fees for Independent Restaurants

Uber Eats is waiving delivery fees for all orders coming from independent restaurants in the United States and Canada. The move is a response to the operational and financial strain restaurants are feeling as governments order statewide shutdowns of hospitality venues in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Effective now, customers can find independent restaurants in the Uber Eats app by looking for the EAT LOCAL banner. Delivery fees will be automatically waived. This will help alleviate some of the financial strain restaurants are currently under as they are forced to close dining rooms and adopt or expand off-premises ordering. To further assist with monetary burdens, Uber Eats is also allowing restaurants to opt into daily payments, rather than billing weekly, as is normal.

All the major delivery companies now offer some form of relief to both independent restaurants and those driving/biking food to customers’ doorsteps. Grubhub/Seamless has suspended commission fees for these independent restaurants and set up a fund for drivers and couriers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Postmates, too, has a fund for workers and will waive commission fees for new restaurants signing up with the platform in San Francisco. DoorDash just unveiled a boatload of initiatives for both its drivers and its restaurant partners.

Uber Eats will offer two weeks of pay to its drivers who test positive for COVID-19 and those who have to quarantine. The service has also said it is providing products with which they can sanitize equipment used to make deliveries. 

March 17, 2020

DoorDash Makes Moves to Help Workers and Restaurants Impacted by Coronavirus

Third-party delivery service DoorDash today announced a series of moves aimed at protecting workers and customers, and helping restaurants survive in the wake of coronavirus. In a letter sent to The Spoon today, CEO and cofounder Tony Xu outlined the steps his company has taken as more restaurants shutter their dining rooms and states mandate social distancing initiatives that include restaurant closures.

Xu noted that DoorDash has changed its app so that it automatically defaults to the contactless delivery option upon checkout to minimize person-to-person contact between drivers and customers. 

To better protect drivers, DoorDash is also shipping 1 million sets of free hand sanitizer and gloves to its drivers and couriers, as well as consulting with restaurants and health officials to improve safety around food preparation protocols. 

DoorDash is also providing financial assistance to DoorDash/Caviar drivers diagnosed with or quarantined because of COVID-19. The COVID-19 Financial Assistance Program means drivers in the U.S., Canada, and Australia can submit a claim and be eligible for up to two weeks of assistance. It’s an important offering from delivery companies at this time, as most drivers (and gig workers in general) do not get health benefits through their companies and do not qualify for paid sick leave. DoorDash’s program comes on the heels of announcements from Postmates and Grubhub, who last week set up their own financial assistance funds to assist drivers.

Relief funds have also been set up for restaurants, many of whom will suffer financially, and in some cases close permanently, because of mandated (and necessary) closures across the country.

Many major chains have already shuttered their dine-in service and switched to delivery and takeout models. That sounds straightforward enough for Starbucks or McDonald’s, but for smaller, independent restaurants, a switch to delivery is considerably more challenging, especially on the financial front. Delivery companies like DoorDash typically charge a commission fee for each transaction. Those costs — which have been and still are the subject of much controversy — can stretch as high as 30 percent per ticket, making delivery prohibitively expensive for small restaurants, whether or not there’s a pandemic unfolding.

DoorDash has addressed this issue. As of today, independent restaurants in the U.S. can sign up with DoorDash or Caviar and pay zero commission fees for 30 days, according to Xu’s letter. Currently, this option runs through the end of April.

Existing DoorDash partners will pay no commission fees on pickup orders, and Xu’s letter mentions “additional commission reductions for eligible merchants that are already on DoorDash,” though it doesn’t delve into specifics. DoorDash also said it is “earmarking up to $20 million” in merchant marketing programs for existing restaurant customers. 

Finally, the service is adding 100,000 independent restaurants to its DashPass subscription program for free. While we don’t have hard numbers yet, it’s highly possible more people will sign up for subscription memberships to delivery services as more cities require folks to stay home and people look for ways to cut costs on their delivery orders. So getting added to a platform like DashPass could provide a big boost in sales to smaller restaurants. 

DoorDash also said it is working with United Way Worldwide to delivery groceries to food-insecure households, senior citizens, low-income households, and persons with disabilities. For organizations that want to get involved with these efforts, DoorDash has set up an intake site where they can sign up.

March 17, 2020

New York City’s Restaurant Traffic is Down by Almost 70%. That’s Before the Lockdown

This weekend I wrote about how restaurant traffic had seen precipitous drops last week in places like Washington State and New York City due to coronavirus. That trend has only gotten worse.

As of Sunday, restaurant traffic drops in big US cities hit hard by COVID-19 were eye-popping. Using OpenTable data, I charted the year over year traffic from about a month ago (Feb 18th, the first available date using OpenTable’s data) and compared it to year over year traffic on Sunday.

New York City’s restaurant traffic was down by 69%, while Seattle’s restaurant traffic had dropped by 62%. Despite being two of the earliest hotspots, these were not the biggest drops. San Francisco restaurant traffic was down by 72% on Sunday compared to a year earlier, while Boston’s traffic was down 70%.

It should all be noted that this has all happened before the start of mandatory restaurant dine-in shutdowns, which are beginning this week in New York City, Seattle and San Francisco. Clearly, these numbers are going to get worse.

It’s also worth noting that in cities where there are shutdowns, delivery is still allowed and those restaurants that can make the pivot to all-delivery models are attempting to do so. Even Canlis, Seattle’s legendary $300 a plate restaurant, has closed its dining room and opened up a burger-pick-up drive through lane.

Still, businesses that were built to feed diners inside a space cannot pivot on a dime and we’re seeing significant disruption to even the biggest names in dining. Danny Meyer announced the temporary shut downs of his restaurants, following the likes of Tom Douglas in Seattle. José Andrés, being the great José Andrés, has shut down his restaurants and turned them into community kitchens to feedd COVID-impacted families.

We’ll continue to cover the impact of coronavirus as we move into forced closings. For those restaurants looking to ramp up their delivery business, we’ve started to gather a list of companies lending a helping hand here.

March 17, 2020

Chowly Offering “No-Cost” Starter Package to Help Restaurants Pivot to Delivery

Amid increasing city and state mandates for restaurants to stop any dine-in options, restaurant software company Chowly announced today that it is offering restaurants a “no-cost startup package” to help dine-in establishments quickly shift their businesses into delivery-focused models.

From the press announcement emailed to The Spoon:

To help restaurants quickly start executing off-premise order fulfillment, Chowly’s COVID-19 Relief Response will offer waived setup fees and a 60-day, no-risk trial period to restaurants that sign up for a limited time.

Through Chowly, restaurants can integrate direct online ordering channels and third-party delivery platforms such as Grubhub, Uber Eats, DoorDash and Postmates. Chowly says restaurants can do this in a little as two business days and all orders through channels are sent directly to restaurants’ existing POS systems with no need for additional tablets, hardware or extra labor.

Being able to quickly get up and running with not just a delivery platform but one that can process and manage orders from multiple services at once is hugely important for restaurants at the moment. Most businesses operate under razor-thin margins in the best of times; having to close up shop for an unspecified amount of time could cause serious financial strain for some businesses and permanently close others.

Chowly’s offer is among the many ways the restaurant industry, and those dependent on it, are trying to cope with the global COVID-19 global pandemic. Other software companies like Foodetective, Bbot and Lavu have also made special offers to try and ease restaurants’ burdens.

As we have written extensively as of late, the coronavirus’ spread it rapidly upending not just the restaurant business, but the entire meal journey.

March 16, 2020

Updated: Cities and States With Restaurant Closures Due to Coronavirus Concerns

Across the U.S., cities as well as entire states are requiring restaurants, bars, wineries, and other food/bev businesses to close their doors to help stop the spread of coronavirus. At the start of today, several had already done so, and that list has grown longer.

It’s worth nothing that without clear direction from the Federal government, cities and states themselves are having to make the call on whether businesses should remain open, reduce capacity, or use some other measure to avoid crowds of people congregating. This list, which we will be updating regularly throughout the week, reflects the most current news of the closures.  

In most cases, restaurants are allowed to continue fulfilling delivery and takeout orders.

Northeast:

  • Connecticut: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Massachusetts: Dine-in service banned until April 17
  • New Jersey: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • New Hampshire: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • New York (including New York City): Dine-in service banned indefinitely 
  • Pennsylvania: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Rhode Island: Dine-in service banned indefinitely 
  • Vermont: Dine-in service banned until April 6

Mid-Atlantic:

  • Virginia: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Maryland: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Washington, D.C.: Dine-in service banned indefinitely

South:

  • Atlanta, GA: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Austin, TX: Dine-in service banned until May 1
  • Dallas, TX: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Kentucky: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Louisiana: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Nashville, Tennessee: Some bars closed, restaurants must reduce capacity to 50 percent
  • North Carolina: Dine-in service banned indefinitely

Midwest:

  • Illinois: Dine-in service banned until March 30
  • Indiana: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Iowa: Dine-in service banned until March 31
  • Michigan: Dine-in service banned indefinitely 
  • Ohio: Dine-in service banned indefinitely 

West:

  • Arizona: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • California: Guidance issued, Dine-in service banned until March 31 in Los Angeles
  • Las Vegas, Nevada: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Denver, Colorado: Dine-in service banned indefinitely
  • Washington State: Dine-in service banned indefinitely

March 16, 2020

Here’s How Coronavirus Could Change Food Tech Accelerators in the Future

For the last couple weeks, I’ve been working out of the Food-X office, one of the most well-known food tech accelerators in the world. And amid news of state-wide restaurant closures, events getting postponed or cancelled, and other ways coronavirus has set the food industry reeling, I found myself wondering what happens to startup accelerator programs as the pandemic whips its way around the globe altering both daily life and day-to-day business operations?

Startup accelerators exist to foster and invest in the development and growth of young companies. Multi-month-long programs often involve startups working together, or at least out of the same shared office space, face-to-face meetings with mentors and potential investors, and demo days, where founders pitch their products and services to crowds of people. But at a time when public spaces are being shut down and companies are mandating employees to work from home, startup accelerators may also have to change they way they run their programs.

To get a hint of what’s to come, I sat down with Food-X’s Program Director Peter Boddenheimer last week to chat about how the startup accelerator format will likely change in response to all this, and what that means for participating companies.

1. Prepare for remote work and weird hours.

Accelerator programs vary widely in terms of how long they require participants to actually be onsite. Some, like The Yield Lab or Chipotle’s accelerator, only require companies to be at HQ for certain weeks. Others, like Food-X, are conducted in-person for the duration of the program.

That’s under normal circumstances, though. In the wake of a pandemic, in-person programs can almost certainly expect to change their format, something Food-X itself is already doing. Boddenheimer said that while the program will start as planned this week, it will be conducted virtually for the time being. “We’re preparing in terms of the tools that we’re going to use for remote sessions, recording everything and having high-quality recordings so that people can get value out of it,” he noted, adding that now was an “interesting opportunity” for alternative models like this.

Food-X is, of course, in New York City, one of the hardest hit areas in the U.S. in terms of coronavirus right now. But with more cities and states closing gyms, cinemas, restaurants, wineries, and other businesses, more programs around the world might want to consider virtual programming for cohorts that kick off soon. For those that continue to meet in person, they may also want to adjust office hours so that attendees are arriving and leaving during non-peak hours, when elevators, stairwells, and trains will be less crowded.

2. There may not be demo days.

The culmination of many accelerator programs is a demo day where startups pitch to potential investors and other industry figures. But given that the process involves lots of people crammed into a room together, and in light of the CDC is advising against groups of 50 or more meeting for the next eight weeks, we can expect that many demo days scheduled for the next few months will either move online or not happen at all. 

Boddenheimer said the prospect of not having one presents challenges — and that may not be a bad thing. Citing his own love/hate relationship with demo days, he noted that he actually looks forward to this challenge of having to find an alternative to the traditional format. “I think it puts the onus on us to do more in terms of preparing people. Not necessarily pitch videos but maybe higher production value videos that would help people communicate with investors.” While he added that any kind of community building was “going to be tough” right now, the glass-half-full view of the situation is that not being able to do in-person demo days and meetings with potential investors will force everyone in the startup community to look outside comfortable norms and run better processes when it comes to fundraising.

“And if we find some things that work, maybe they start to become the norm,” he said.

3. There will be lots of questions and uncertainties.

As of this writing, Food-X’s latest cohort is happening, though with modifications like remote sessions. Many more accelerator programs will have to grapple with whether or not to do the same with their formats, and in some cases whether to hold a cohort at all.

Startups, meanwhile, will have to decide if they are willing to relocate to participate.

“Everybody’s had questions,” Boddenheimer said of the chosen participants for Food-X’s upcoming cohort, which starts tomorrow. So far, only one of those has expressed major concerns and, after much discussion with Food-X, has ultimately decided to attend anyway.

“We’re checking in [with companies] daily and reading up on things and we’re trying to make the best decisions we can based on the information we have, but it’s kind of something nobody’s really dealt with before.” He added that Food-X employees have gone to great lengths to “make sure the office is as safe an environment as possible.”

Of course, that’s if and when companies can actually show up to work onsite. And with the situation around COVID-19 changing hourly and more cities mandating closures, it’s anyone’s guess what accelerator programs and their participants will face in a week’s time, let alone a couple months.

But before we all head down the doom-and-gloom rabbit hole, consider this: successful startups and their founders tend to be far more flexible and adaptable by nature than, say, a 20,000-person corporation. As Boddenheimer says, “The best founders learn to take the ups and downs in stride. So I think those people thrive in this type of environment.”

That doesn’t mean the next few months will be easy or even pleasant for young startups and the organizations that foster them. But it does suggest that new and better norms, not to mention companies, can and will come out of this time.

“There’s a theory in general that the best time to start a startup is during downturns, when it’s the hardest,” says Boddenheimer. “It may end up being that the next year or two years are are really tough time but some great companies are going to be started in these next 12 to 24 months.”

March 16, 2020

New to Working From Home? Here Are Some Food Tech Tips to Avoid Big Weight Gain

As someone who has worked exclusively from home for the past two and a half years, I’d like to say “welcome!” to all the people who are now forced to do the same (and thank you for doing your social distancing part!).

And as someone who gained 18 pounds in those two-plus years, I’d also like to say, it’s really easy to pack on unwanted weight while working from home. I mean, you’re cooped up in a relatively small space all day, it’s real easy to make frequent trips to the cupboard, you can work in sweatpants or pajamas that expand with you, and there is just you (or family) so there’s less guilt around snacking.

Thankfully, over the last few months I have learned to change up some routines and have steadily been shedding that weight ever since. So if you are new to working from home, I wanted to share some food tech tips to help you navigate your new normal.

Please note: I’m not a dietitian or nutritionist. I’m not going to tell you what you should be eating, you should go see an expert if you are concerned about that. This is more about little things you can do around your place to keep extra weight off.

  1. Don’t put your home office in the kitchen. I realize that this may not be possible for everyone, but if you can avoid it, don’t set up at the kitchen table or counter. Frequent snacking is the enemy, and it’s far too easy to grab a handful of Thin Mints each time you finish a spreadsheet. It’s harder to graze all day when the food’s in another room.
  2. Get a nutrition app to keep track of what you’re eating. Keeping track of what you eat is super helpful. I use MyNetDiary to log my food, but there are a lot of other options out there. MyNetDiary gives me a target calorie intake count for the day, as well as keeping track of my macronutrients (fat, protein, carbs). It takes some practice to get into the habit of recording all your meals (even snacks!), but it has a barcode scanner, and keeping this kind of diary really helps put into perspective not only how much you eat, but how many calories are hidden in your everyday meals.
  3. Get a food scale. Yes, weighing everything you eat makes the act of tracking what you eat more complicated, but in the end it actually makes the whole process easier. Weighing your food so you know how many grams/ounces your are consuming makes your tracking more accurate, especially when logging it into a nutrition app. Weighing food also helps with portion control! The Wirecutter’s recommended pick is $20 on Amazon.
  4. Check out online cooking classes! Yes, your favorite restaurant is probably delivering right now. And yes, they are implementing contactless methods to reduce human-to-human interaction. But even in the best of times you wouldn’t eat out every night (let alone every meal). Maybe now is the time to try your hand at home cooking. Not a good cook, you say? Well lucky for you there are plenty of online recipes and cooking classes to help elevate your cuisine. There’s always YouTube or Tasty for instructional videos. Additionally, The Chef and Dish offers private online video cooking classes, or you can try the Food Network Kitchen app, which offers live and on-demand cooking classes taught by Food Network’s roster of celebrity chefs.
  5. Exercise. Normally, I’d say hit up the gym every day if only to interact with other humans. But given the current pandemic, I can’t recommend that. If you can get outside and away from people, go for a walk or a hike. Otherwise, throw some burpees or pushups into your routine (as always check with your doctor before engaging in strenuous activity).

These are just a few tips that I have found helpful. They aren’t rocket science, but hopefully you can learn from my past missteps. For other WFH pros out there, what works for you to keep the weight off? Leave a comment, or drop us a line to let us know.

March 16, 2020

States Call for Restaurant Shutdowns, Businesses Switch to Delivery Models

The list of cities and states now mandating that restaurants close their dining rooms and switch to delivery- and takeout-only models continues to grow as governments and businesses work to slow the spread of coronavirus across the U.S. These moves arrive just as the CDC advises against gatherings of 50 or more for the next eight weeks.

As of Monday morning, Ohio, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Washington state have ordered bars and restaurants to close or switch to off-premises formats. New York City and Hoboken, N.J. are also requiring restaurants to shutter dining rooms, and around the country individual businesses have been voluntarily closing their establishments for the last few days. Starbucks and Chick-fil-A have moved all stores to a to-go model, Momofuku shuttered all of its locations, and Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality group closed all its restaurants. Those are just a few names on a list that will in all likelihood include most restaurants in the U.S. in the near future.

How restaurants will manage this shift and what will happen to existing staff varies city by city, restaurant by restaurant, and in some cases by restaurants within the same brand. Starbucks, for example, is currently keeping the bulk of its locations open for delivery, mobile pickup, and drive thru orders, but will completely shut stores at malls and universities and in areas with “high clusters of COVID-19 cases,” according to a letter from the company.

Celebrity chef Jose Andrés, meanwhile, said he would be closing all of his restaurants but that some of them would be transformed to community kitchens staffed by volunteers giving takeout meals to those in need. Existing employees will get paid leave in the meantime. 

Other employees are not so fortunate. Seattle chef and restauranteur Tom Douglas has closed 12 of his 13 restaurants and laid off staff, saying that he will rehire them once business reopens.

And, of course, many businesses are switching to off-premises-only models and will be able to fulfill delivery orders and in some cases those placed at the drive-thru. On the one hand, that’s a plus for existing staff, who presumably in most cases will be able to keep their jobs. However, delivery, especially via third-party apps like Grubhub and Uber Eats, remains a challenge for many businesses, especially independent ones. Commission fees these services collect per transaction are often prohibitively high for small restaurants. And with recession looming (probably already here, actually), there are questions around whether consumers will even want to pay the delivery and service fees required to get restaurant meals sent straight to their homes.

Most of the major delivery companies have responded with initiatives aimed at smaller restaurants and customers at this time. Uber Eats just announced it will waive all delivery fees for orders at independent restaurants. And last week, both Grubhub and Postmates announced they will waive commission fees for independent restaurants for the time being.

However, not all restaurants are set up for delivery, and some worry that the closing now will permanently put them out of business. One owner told the L.A. Times that his shop is not set up for delivery and that, ““The numbers really don’t make sense; that’s why we haven’t done it in the past.”

Whether delivery companies negotiate more affordable rates with new restaurant customers during this time remains to be seen. Postmates, for example, said it would waive all commission fees for independent restaurants in San Francisco that sign up with the service. Others may follow.

We’ll be updating this post regularly, so check back for more news on restaurant closures as well as how businesses, delivery companies, and customers are managing this situation.

March 16, 2020

Impossible Foods Raises $500 Million Series F to Weather Global Volatility

Impossible Foods, makers of the eponymous plant-based meat, raised a $500 million round of funding late last week, Forbes first reported early this morning. Impossible added on Linkedin that it was a Series F round, and Reuters reports this brings the total amount raised by the company to $1.3 billion.

The round was led by South Korean firm Mirae Asset Global Investments, with participation from existing investors Khosla, Horizons Ventures, and Temasek.

Impossible’s fundraise comes amidst a global pandemic that has caused disruptions to daily lives around the world. Impossible Foods’ CFO David Lee wouldn’t comment on whether flexitarians are stockpiling Impossible meat, but he did say:

“With what’s happening in the world, it’s important to reassure our customers that we are built to withstand short-term shocks,” Lee said. “We’re able to stand tall. We have the ability with long-term investors.”

Just a couple months ago (though it feels like a lifetime), Impossible debuted its plant-based pork at CES in January and launched a plant-based Impossible Sausage Croissan’wich with Burger King.

Fast forward to now and the spread of COVID-19 alters our reality on an ongoing basis. With markets tumbling and a potential recession on the horizon (or already here), raising a sizeable round of funding makes a lot of sense for Impossible. Plant-based meat rival Beyond Meat went public last year, and plans to open up a new production facility in Asia by the end of this year.

Even with enough funding, this pandemic could impact Impossible in other ways. As my colleague, Catherine Lamb wrote last week:

Supply chains are another thing that could well be affected by COVID-19. Import restrictions in China have dramatically slowed down the country’s exports of meat and poultry. Alternative protein companies who import their plant-based ingredients from other countries, especially China, could also face production slowdowns as trade slows.

With fresh capital and a bulked up war chest, Impossible navigating this crisis is way more, well, possible.

Previous
Next

Primary Sidebar

Footer

  • About
  • Sponsor the Spoon
  • The Spoon Events
  • Spoon Plus

© 2016–2025 The Spoon. All rights reserved.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
 

Loading Comments...