According to one Yale professor that’s quoted in this New York Post article, we’re going to need to keep our ears the ground because “eyes wide shut” parties are about to start up. It will probably take awhile, but since we’re all taking Zoom calls in our underwear these days, the idea of meeting new friends without that stuffy thing called clothing sounds like the next logical step. Okay, we went off on a tangent because clearly it’s hard to concentrate on anything for an extended period of time these days.

What Yale professor Dr. Nicholas Christakis is really saying is what Newton’s Third Law has been saying all along. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. COVID-19 has had a tremendous ripple effect across the hospitality industry, shaking up traditional food systems and business models.

So, how does this play out for you and me? Here’s 5 predictions that have a strong chance of all coming true because we really know what we are talking about when it comes to restaurants - for the most part.

Prediction 1: Choking First Aid Posters Will Now Have Company

That’s right folks, you’re going to start seeing more signs about how to help your fellow human in order to stop the spread of current and future pandemics. These signs will include some or all of the following: words, colors, masks, numbers, happy emojis, sad emojis, phone numbers, and websites. Some restaurants might even get creative in displaying such signage. These signs will be perceived as very normal and constitute a business’s obligation to educating their clientele.

Prediction 2: Guests - especially food critics - will quietly judge a restaurant based on their hand sanitizer

There’s Purell, and then there’s luxurious artisanal sanitizer with names like Pseudo Citrine made by the likes of Amass. If a restaurant isn’t spending their bootstrapped budget on ridiculously priced sanitizer, are they even trying to create a scene?

Prediction 3: To go, canned, and non-alcoholic drinks will now be a staple of every bar & restaurant

The French Quarter of New Orleans figured out a long time ago that offering cocktails to go is a strategic business move. Now because of COVID-19, other states have learned that selling alcohol to go provides a much needed revenue stream that would be foolish to take away from small businesses at this point. Though liquor stores and neighborhood residents do have a legitimate reason to want the to go cocktail trend dead , the revenue opportunity will be too good to pass up. State liquor authorities will actually throw businesses a bone by making cocktails to go a permanent offering, which will appeal to consumers because…

…they’ll need a traditionally made cocktail to follow up the canned one they just shotgunned during pre-game. If you didn’t notice (blame Zoom fatigue), canned cocktails became a thing in 2020. But because drinking in an aisle of CVS has yet to take off (keyword: yet), we know savvy bartenders who just can’t bring themselves to make another mojito will beg their Beverage Manager for cases of ready to drink canned cocktails. It’s a win-win situation for drinkers and drink makers, and we have White Claw to thank for making us realize our future generations don’t have to be defined by hard seltzer.

Finally, non-alcoholic drinks are no longer the bane of existence for bartenders in search of a good tip and showcasing their talent. Dry January, Sober October, or in most people’s cases, just another day, should be appreciated in the way we celebrate wine making, brewing, distilling, and maybe not as much as cheese making but certainly close.

Prediction 4: Fancy Take Out options will become a staple of Netflix & Chill nights

Why head to Eleven Madison Park when you can just pick up their Roast Duck dinner to heat up at home? Don’t want to wait a month to secure a reservation at Carbone so you just ordered their veal parm for pick up? That is an amazing call and we wish we were you. This year, fine dining restaurants had to pull back the curtain in order to survive. Even Rao’s, home of New York’s most mysterious reservation system, got in on the take out game for the first time in its 125 year history. Sure, you could get penne marinara and a house salad from any one of the many pizzerias and Italian restaurants that call NYC home, but don’t you feel better knowing it came from a place you’ll never be able to step foot in?

Prediction 5: The world will finally admit soup isn’t just made for old people

Want to know how to really appreciate soup? Dine out in 20 degree weather. If there’s one category that’s thriving as much as one can in a pandemic, it’s warm bowls of liquid filled with vegetables, noodles, and meat. In fact if you’re dining outdoors and not ordering a soup, are you even tasting anything? Probably not.

Soup, you’ve been there for us when we’ve needed you the most, which was when we’re sick and mom told us we should enjoy you until we feel better. We disrespected you with jokes and dumped you down the sink more times that we’d like to admit, yet you kept turning up on our darkest days. Soup, we know its you that’s helping us get to where we need to go in 2021, and we just want you to know you’re ready to get the respect you so long deserve. Or at least premiere placement with half a sandwich on a special of some sorts.