Well, as with many of our peers, industry alliances and partners, the start to our 2020 season has been interesting, to say the least….
We have been patiently awaiting the recently released details and official “order”, as released by Health BC, and are in the midst of adjusting our practices. Those of you whom have joined us either at Backyard Farm for a tailored private culinary demonstration or workshop will recognize the efforts and consideration we have always maintained for cleanliness, food safety and sanitation. It has always been a priority for us to exceed the expectations of Interior Health in this regard, but we have put much thought and consideration in how we can adapt our practices to inspire consumer confidence in our business and services, while returning to business in the “new normal”. We recognize that there is much uncertainty out there, trust me-we feel it too! With this in mind, we have made some necessary adjustments to enable us to have guests return to Backyard Farm, and we are so excited!
We are currently piecing together a formal staff training manual, but have updated our policies and processes to be shared with those of you who have bookings scheduled with us this season. In addition, we have seen a substantial amount of cancellations, and would love to see some dates get filled in-the future of our business is very much dependent on your support. Obviously much of our seasonal revenue is from our winery partnered events and catering, and many of these events have been postponed or cancelled due to the current situation. The good news is that we now have dates available for private bookings with us, which wasn’t the case a few months ago! We will also be expanding our offerings to reflect “No Contact Catering”, providing our quality, handcrafted food to our clients in a slightly different way(for now). Please feel free to reach out for details or further information regarding this, and visit the Calendar Page for our availability.
In regards to our re-opening, we have established and released our new guidelines for booking a private event with us. We will make adjustments to our capacity as is allowed, but in the interim, we must adhere to the current regulations. We do appreciate that this may be a disappointment for some who were expecting the ability to host 20 guests, we just feel that it is most important to adhere to all the guidelines proposed, and continue to make the health and safety of our guests a priority, along with our staff and family. We assure you that as soon as we are able to extend this, we will do so accordingly. We have included the new protocol on the “Chef’s Table” page as well, and will continue to work directly with our clients to tailor all details.
From the catering perspective, we feel it is our responsibility to encourage following the proposed regulations. Gatherings for 50 or less people is allowed, although Buffet or Family Style format menus are not currently suggested. We will adjust and adapt our services as we are able, and are currently discussing the possibilities regarding the events we have scheduled moving forward in the season. We will be implementing a “No Contact Catering” Pricing Guideline shortly…Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions about our catering services. Here is our new normal, as of June 1st.
Phase 2 Covid-19 Re-Open Policies and Practices
To our valued clients:
The team at Backyard Farm have always made a priority to reflect a quality minded approach to our services and culinary experiences, while maintaining food safety, cleanliness and organization which exceeds Interior Health guidelines. In regards to the current Covid 19 pandemic, we have adjusted our practices in order to further insure consumer confidence in our business and services. We are closely monitoring all suggestions and guidelines by our governing bodies, including Health BC, Interior Health and Worksafe BC. We have implemented practices reflective of all current requirements, where applicable, to our unique business. As always, the safety of our guests, staff and family remain our priority. We will adjust our guidelines as mandated, and will adapt our policies reflective of any provincial health orders as they are updated.
Backyard Farm Chef’s Table will continue to be available for private events only. Pre-booking is required in order to facilitate tailored menu development and event specifics.
We have adjusted our practices as follows:
Our capacity has been changed, as required by the recent Health Act and the guidelines around social distancing. Until further notice, we will host 12 guests maximum, set as two tables of 6 guests per table. We will not offer “family style or buffet” format meals to minimize risk of cross contamination.
The Host: Each booking must have a designated host who will be the prime contact with Backyard Farm. The host will be responsible for communicating expectations and ensuring contact information of guests. -We respectfully request the host to communicate with intended guests regarding their general health prior to the event to be certain everyone is feeling well and has not recently returned from international travel without the required 2 week quarantine. We reserve the right to refuse service or entry should we notice symptoms of Covid-19.
Guests: All guests are required to share pertinent health and travel information with their host. All guests will be required to sanitize their hands upon arrival and sanitizer is available throughout Backyard Farm. Unfortunately guests will not be allowed in the kitchen area at this time.
Staff: All staff, including “on call” service staff members, are required to sign an agreement outlining their responsibility to inform us of symptoms of illness right away. In addition to training on our new sanitation and service requirements, we also ask our staff to respect our small business by being sensitive of their social contacts. We have a very small team, thus it is very efficient for us to keep open communication on a daily basis.
Procedures:
– All commonly used surfaces in our private dining room will be sanitized using approved Food Safe sanitizer and disinfectants prior to guest arrival. This includes and is not limited to all tables, chairs (seats, backs, etc), handrails, door handles, faucets, and light switches.
–All plateware, glassware and cutlery are washed in a high temperature dish machine, utilizing approved warewashing chemicals and a high temperature sterilizing rinse at a minimum of 186’F for the rinse cycle.
During Service: –Service staff members will adhere to social distancing wherever possible, while continuing to offer our elevated hospitality and service standards.
-Guest washroom will be sanitized after every guest use, whenever possible. All common surfaces will be sanitized, including door handles, faucet and toilet handle. All hand towels are single use, and laundered with bleach and hot water to insure they are properly sanitized.
– Clearing dishes by our service staff will be done as efficiently as possible, with thorough handwashing after each contact with guest plates, cutlery, glassware and utensils.
-Our intimate culinary and service team will be more aware and practice suggested social distancing while preparing and plating food whenever possible.
We trust you recognize how seriously we take our role in the safety, health and well being of our valued clients, staff, family and future of our business. During this uncertain time, we are making a priority of offering a quality-driven culinary experience with us, while adapting our practices to reflect the comfort and confidence of our clients. We are hopeful that our detail-oriented approach to a tailored culinary demonstration will offer some piece of mind that we are very conscious and aware of the responsibility we have. We will continue to make adjustments where prudent, as we continue to closely monitor the “re-opening” guidelines and suggestions from our governing bodies. Your business is crucial to our future, now more than ever and we thank you for your support.