Leading proponents of Japanese cuisine in Canada are ready to take on the challenges of social distancing in a dining environment. Here are a few things you can expect if you are venturing out to try some sushi or Japanese skewers.  

‘Modern problems require modern solutions’ is a familiar phrase among meme fanatics. When it began trending last year, nobody could have guessed that 2020 would require it to be put to use with COVID-19; quite literally.

Provinces in Canada are in the process of reopening in different ways, and many more businesses have been given a green signal. Several ventures are in a frantic state, considering there are multiple requisites to be kept in mind to keep customers safe and healthy.

Kinka Family, however, is all ready to welcome gourmands into their outlets including KINTON RAMEN, KINKA IZAKAYA, Kintori Yakitori, JaBistro, and Neo Coffee Bar. They spent their COVID-19 lockdown reassessing and refining the way they operate to make the post-lockdown dining a safe and satisfying experience. This is beside the pandemic-necessitated socially responsible work of providing meals to hospital staff and health care workers in a tie-up with a non-profit organization named United TO-gether!

So, now, they are greeting the reopening with the “Expect More Care” campaign—a step to inform customers and employees that they have a safe environment while dining in at one of their outlets.

The most visible changes Kinka Family has introduced are, of course, to the interiors of their dining halls. “In March, when restaurants were ordered to cease all dine-in operations, each of our locations underwent an assessment to ensure physical distancing could be upheld by those who were to enter the space. This included team members, third-party delivery couriers, contractors, and customers who visited for in-store/curbside pick-up,” informs Stella Yu, director of Marketing at Kinka Family.

Over time, the safety measures have been expanded to include newly introduced floor markers and strategic distancing between tables. “Before reopening, each of our locations was retrofitted with plexiglass dividers, separating the kitchen and dining space. More recently, the plexiglass dividers were added to communal spaces such as bars and tables where our team deemed necessary,” Stella adds.

Going the extra mile, they have also appointed a Hygiene Ambassador who will manage the flow of guests and also ensure the general cleanliness of the place. Customers can also expect contactless elements such as downloadable menus, waitlists operated by QR code, disposable cutlery, and touchless payment.

Expecting their customers to support them in creating a worry-free experience for everyone, the eateries have introduced a Health Declaration Form to be signed before entering the halls. Keen on having a healthy team, the brand has a non-invasive temperature check for their employees and also mandates masks among all staff members.

“It is important customers know that businesses are committed to serving them and have their best interest at heart. We’ve done this by providing them with the knowledge and tools needed to ensure their safety and well-being. We want to ensure that our customers know and trust that the values we held before COVID-19 still apply during times of uncertainty,” Stella winds up.