People hankering for pizza but also seeking to keep the coronavirus at bay might want to take note of Pizza Hut's announcement of a new contactless curbside pickup service launched today. Prepared with multi-layered safety protocols, the food comes in a sealed package to reassure diners their hot lunch or dinner hasn't been touched by human hands.
According to the Yum! Brands (YUM 3.37%) restaurant chain, customers can now select "contactless curbside delivery" during checkout on either the Pizza Hut app or online ordering system. The service can also be requested via phone. The customer pre-pays with a debit or credit card so no cash needs to change hands, and can supply a brief description of their vehicle if they're picking up their meal.
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The blog post points out that after the pizza is cooked at 400 degrees, it is removed from the oven using a "hands-free oven-to-box process" before being brought out and placed into the customer's vehicle by a worker wearing gloves.
Starting next week, all medium and large pizza boxes will also be closed with "tamper proof safety seals" to provide assurance nobody has touched or otherwise accessed the pizza between the oven and the car.
The quick-service pizza restaurant says it's also distributing single-use gloves and approximately 13 million protective masks to its personnel. It's planning to install plexiglas sneeze shields at counters and will begin regular employee temperature checks once it obtains and distributes thermometers in the coming weeks. The company recently boosted its workforce by 30,000 in response to coronavirus-driven demand.
