The restaurant industry has been one of the hardest hit sectors since the began.

At the peak of the spring lockdown, more than 800,000 food service industry workers were . The pain will likely continue with fewer diners returning in the immediate future. A recent survey from Dalhousie University projects the Canadian restaurant industry will lose $20 billion in revenue in 2021.

To survive, many restaurants, fundamental to a city’s identity and culture, are remaking themselves. Some Toronto restaurateurs are leading the way in how restaurants will operate in the long haul — ideas that go beyond contactless pickups and delivery.

Karon Liu, the Star’s food and culture reporter, talks to Adrian Cheung about the inventive ways restaurants are changing for the long-term and how many small business owners are refusing to give up in an unprecedented crisis for their industry.

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