How to Safely Order Takeout During the COVID-19 Outbreak

 

As many local restaurants have been forced to close their doors due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the demand for food delivery has naturally increased. After all, we can’t be expected to eat our own cooking, can we?! At the same time, many consumers are rightly asking themselves whether it’s safe to order takeout meals during the coronavirus outbreak.

The official word from the USDA, CDC and FDA is that there’s no evidence to suggest that COVID-19 can be transmitted by food. That’s great news for your favorite local takeout restaurants! However, all three sources stress the importance of good hygiene practices, as there is evidence that the virus can live on surfaces such as plastic.

Here are a few extra precautions you can take to help avoid the spread of COVID-19 when ordering a delivery meal from a takeout restaurant near you:

Be sure your delivery is contact-free

Most delivery services such as Uber Eats are now offering contact-free delivery, and you can tip the driver digitally via the app. If you’re ordering your delivery directly from a local takeout restaurant, ask them to leave your delivery meal outside your door, and ask them if you can add the tip directly to your bill and pay over the phone rather than leaving cash.

Use your own dishes 

We know how tempting it can be to eat your delivery meal right from the plastic container (especially when nobody is around to see you!) but it’s much safer to transfer your takeout to your own dishes, and immediately throw away or recycle the original packaging. Store any leftovers in your own clean containers.

Wash your hands  

This might seem like obvious advice, but washing your hands is especially important when handling takeout food and packaging. Wash your hands immediately after handling any packaging, and before you start handling your own dishes or eating your takeout meal. We also recommend avoiding placing any takeout bags or containers directly on your kitchen counter and placing these in the sink instead.

Order in bulk 

Any excuse to order extra takeout is a winner in our book! If you tend to order delivery meals multiple times a week, try to minimise unnecessary contact by ordering enough food so that you’ll have leftovers for a few days. This will also help out your local takeout restaurants by reducing demand for their drivers.

Choose your restaurant carefully

All of the takeout restaurants on TASTYFIND are held to high hygiene standards, but when ordering delivery from a local restaurant, don’t hesitate to call and ask what they are doing to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Are their employees wearing masks and gloves while preparing your meal? How many workers are in the kitchen at one time? These are questions that any restaurant manager will be prepared to answer.

We hope these tips will make ordering your next takeout meal a little less stressful. The only problem now is choosing which cuisine to order for your next delivery meal… and unfortunately only you can make that decision!