The pandemic has hit both the restaurant industry and customers hard. The lockdowns and the uncertainty of the situation caused unprecedented levels of anxiety and stress for everyone. So for a restaurant built on the concept of serving comfort food, Recovery Food had to adapt quickly to continue bringing feel-good dishes to its customers.
Operating as a 24/7 restaurant, Recovery Food’s concept was simple– to serve the memories of home from different backgrounds all day, every day. But when quarantine restrictions were put into place, Recovery Food was also forced to limit its business hours.
But with customers forced to stay home, a lot of them away from their families, food became their source of solace. How did Recovery Food manage to do it? We spoke with their Operations Manager, Albert Rejuso, to find out what their strategies were in adjusting and eventually, recovering.
Problems and solutions in operations
Recovery Food was initially planning to set up new branches in 2020. Instead, it had to recalibrate its entire strategy to be able to achieve one immediate goal–survive. While it became compulsory for restaurants to delve into the world of deliveries, it wasn't as simple as it looked. There were several considerations that the restaurant had to look into– packaging, delivery systems and letting customers know about the new services.
Packaging became an important factor because for them to be able to deliver the comfort food that customers crave, they had to arrive in the best condition with no leaks, no sogginess, no spoilage. They also had to be completely sanitary to keep customers safe.
Figuring out the delivery system was also a major part of making sure this transition would run smoothly. With limited manpower, Recovery Food knew they wouldn't be able to take care of everything with an in-house team. This led them to partner up with GrabFood to be able to have a secure and seamless system from presenting their menu, receiving orders, collecting payments and making sure the food arrives at the customers' homes on time and intact.
But another vital step was getting the word out there. Social media played a big role in spreading the news about the new delivery and pick-up services. Having profiles on Facebook and Instagram allowed them to easily communicate with customers about their new offers–like their new twist on rice bowls, safety updates, ordering processes and information on the restaurant's operations. It also became an avenue for them to reassure customers that they were following all safety protocols.
Keeping things hot in the kitchen
On top of having to deal with the restaurant's operations side, the kitchen had to make adjustments just the same. Sourcing out ingredients that used to come from the market and on-site areas proved to be rather difficult. Thankfully, Unilever Food Solutions, according to Rejuso, was able to continue to provide the quality ingredients they use in their cooking. But for their other partners, it wasn't always as simple.
In order for Recovery Food to continue with the business, they had to have food to sell. The restaurant had to resort to finding new partners for ingredients that would allow them to maintain the taste and quality of their food. While sourcing these new partners, the criteria were that they had to be of high quality and they had to be able to deliver. Luckily, Recovery Food was able to get past this hurdle and keep their restaurant going.
The future of foodservice
The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically changed the way we run food businesses and for Rejuso, in order to stay afloat, one must always remember to innovate and adapt aggressively. It's important to constantly look for better ways to improve your operations—be it in the management or operations side of things, production, marketing or working on the overall customer perception of your brand. We're seeing that how a restaurant behaves at a time like this truly makes a long-lasting impact. So for all of the decisions that have to be made, they need to be just as smart as they are quick.
In addition to that, with the importance given to proper hygiene and sanitation in the past two years, customers are likely to expect the same standards to carry on even long after we've dealt with the COVID-19 crisis. This means that on top of dynamically changing food trends and preferences, restaurants will also have to keep up with demands for fresh, quality ingredients and proper handling of dishes from the kitchen to the table. This involves sourcing from the right suppliers, prioritizing waste management, training your staff to practice the now normal safety measures, and taking customer service up a notch to always make them feel at ease. Because as much as we would want things to go back to the way they used to be, it's better to anticipate that this is how things are going to be from now on.
While reading about what Recovery Food had to go through in order to survive, one might think that it will take a village to implement everything. But Rejuso says that all it really takes is good leadership. Being efficient in the way instructions are cascaded and being clear with what each and every member has to do will make it easier to move forward. As long as you are all working towards the same goal–survival, then chances are, you will make it.
Satisfy your comfort food cravings! Visit Recovery Food at Crossroads BGC, Stopover BGC, Molito Alabang, UP Town Center, and SM Mall of Asia! You can also find them in GrabFood via the Grab app.
Unilever Food Solutions offers commercial-sized products from well-loved brands like Knorr Professional and Lady's Choice. But apart from offering ingredients, the website contains helpful resources and recipes that food businesses of all sizes can learn from. You can also subscribe to the Unilever Food Solutions newsletter so industry-related content can be sent straight to your inbox.
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