Chipotle to radically overhaul restaurant interior as Bethesda businesses refine coronavirus protocols

X marks the spot at Sweetgreen

Bethesda restaurants are introducing and expanding new protocols to limit the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus as Montgomery County officials hesitate to reopen the economy here. As a result, service continues to be takeout-only, although Gov. Larry Hogan's lifting of the Stay-at-Home order for the majority of the state has boosted traffic and caused some shuttered eateries to decide to reopen for takeout service in recent days. A Bethesda bar employee testing positive for the virus in recent days reminds us that the coronavirus is still very present in our community.

Sweetgreen

Chipotle in downtown Bethesda is making one of the most dramatic changes in how it will operate, but expect these seemingly-radical protocols to become standard in our new abnormal. The burrito restaurant at 7600 Old Georgetown Road is preparing to rip out a counter, wall sections and several pieces of kitchen equipment. It will then a second preparation line in the kitchen, and install a dish sanitizer and an additional handwashing station. In the customer area, Chipotle will install a new counter, a new sneeze-guard system, and new pick-up shelving.

Sweetgreen

At Bethesda Row, Sweetgreen has placed markers on the sidewalk along Bethesda Avenue for customers to stand on as they await pickup of their orders. Neighbor Quartermaine Coffee Roasters has a similar set-up, but at a counter with social distancing. Maryland's mask order remains in effect, and Quartermaine even has official Quatermaine logo masks available for $8 at their Bethesda Row store.

Quartermaine Coffee Roasters face masks

The Chipotle changes give a hint of how restaurants will have to change the preparation process as much as the order fulfillment process. But this will be a major challenge for many mom-and-pop restaurants. Many kitchens are small by nature. Social-distancing is nearly impossible without either a slowdown in service and/or layoffs of extra prep cooks, or without the kind of renovations Chipotle is pursuing.

Social distancing counter outside Quartermaine

Dine-in seating will be a whole other issue. Spacing of tables and masks certainly reduce the risk compared to traditional operations. But they are also largely psychological, as masks must come off to eat and drink, thereby defeating their purpose. Diners will still be in an enclosed space for a lengthy period, one of the major risk factors for Covid-19 transmission. And just how already-squeezed restaurateurs are going to pay Bethesda rents at 1/3 or 1/2 of capacity each day is truly puzzling.

Some economists have warned that as many as half of the restaurants in America may not reopen or recover from the nationwide lockdown. That's got to be additionally concerning in moribund Montgomery County where profit margins for restaurants are razor thin, and the industry has remained flat even as nearby jurisdictions have enjoyed growth in their dining sectors over the last decade, according to the Restaurant Association of Maryland.