Do your favorite restaurants take COVID safety seriously? Yelp rolls out new tools

As restaurants reopen, which ones are taking COVID-19 safety precautions seriously?

Online review site Yelp has rolled out a new tool for diners to rate restaurants on face masks and social distancing, for both employees and customers, according to its blog.

“As consumers look for ways to continue supporting their favorite local businesses, their personal health and safety remains a critical part of the decision-making process,” writes Akhil Kuduvalli, Yelp’s head of consumer product, in the blog.

Yelp added ways for restaurants to outline their health and safety precautions and for diners to offer feedback on them over the summer, the blog says.

On Tuesday, Yelp began displaying results from diners on whether they observed employees and fellow customers following face mask and social distancing protocols, the blog says.

“We know many businesses are prioritizing the health and safety of their customers,” Kuduvalli writes. “This new update further highlights how businesses have adapted to keep their customers safe, and aims to instill confidence in consumers to continue supporting local businesses.”

Based on feedback from diners, restaurant entries on Yelp show either a green or orange check to indicate compliance or non-compliance with COVID-19 safety precautions.

Only a few hundred out of millions of restaurants listed on the site have orange check marks, Yelp said. The site will watch for misuse of the feature.

Yelp also added safety features, such as contactless menus, to the options for restaurants to display about their services, the blog says.

This story was originally published January 13, 2021 at 7:46 AM with the headline "Do your favorite restaurants take COVID safety seriously? Yelp rolls out new tools."