“People have to understand that this is a special situation for all of us, both for the employee and entrepreneur”- interview with the owner of Eleven Street Food, Bunta Álmos

In our new series of interviews, we focused on how the lives of people working in tourism in Covasna County have been affected by the coronavirus restrictions, how they are trying to adapt to the global epidemic. This time we asked the owner of Eleven Street Food, Bunta Álmos.

You have made delivery before. How has the coronavirus pandemic affected you?

We were affected as much as other restaurateurs. Our turnover has decreased significantly, we had to re-profile a bit in order to be able to satisfy the needs of as many clients as possible, so we will continue the delivery activity.

What kind of reorganization did you have to do in your life and business because of the pandemic regulations?

Honestly, the change is very significant. Our indicators have decreased, so people have to understand that this is a special situation for all of us, both for the employee and entrepreneur. We completely remodeled the kitchen, we tried to come up with even more menus, and improve the current one to stay alive.

Talking about the menu, can you tell us also a bit about the food you have?

Our main profile is hamburger, so basically, we make different types of hamburgers. Sometimes we include special offers in the weekly menu, and of course promote them on social media, in order to make our menu more colourful and attractive.

Was it difficult to adapt, to respect the rules in order to continue your work? What kind of regulations have you introduced?

First of all, we took very seriously the regulations of the authorities. We took steps according to the different hygiene regulations. We wear face masks during work time, which makes the job more difficult – it’s pretty hard to work in a kitchen anyway, because of the hot environment. We are constantly disinfecting, which makes our hands dry out all the time. Compared to the usual, we are now placing even more emphasis on changing street clothes, we change all of our clothes starting with our shoes, before we enter the kitchen and come into contact with food.
We have also taken steps that I think are among the first at the city level. We have a mobile POS that our courier always carries, thus providing an opportunity for those who want to pay by card when the food is delivered at their homes.

What do you think about the future?

It would be great to foresee it, but I am convinced that those restaurants that have terrace or garden space, will be preferred most by clients. It is likely that people will still have this fear, but the economy will have to restart slowly, because I think this situation is unsustainable now. Life must go on. I think slowly, but things are going back to normal.

You can find Eleven Street Food at Sfântu Gheorghe, No. 11 Csíki street, and you can order on weekdays from 12 pm to 8 pm by phone 0799 663581, Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/elevenstreetfood/) or through the ospatarul.ro webpage.