How Can I Make My Restaurant Disability Friendly

By Mark Carlson, ATS, ACB

Going out for dinner is one of America’s most popular pastimes.  The incredible variety of restaurants and cuisines provide a tantalizing cornucopia of culinary choices. But when a person with a disability decides to go out for a meal, the choices are greatly diminished. Physical access to restaurants, menus, even seating are challenges, not the taken-for-granted convenience most of us expect.

How can a restaurant or fast-food establishment make their business more disability-friendly?

Physical access to a restaurant involves many of the same challenges as those posed by the architecture of other public business or service. There are other articles on this Website to cover those matters. However, once inside, the environment of a restaurant poses different challenges than most retail stores. Patrons are usually approached by a waiter or hostess and taken to a table. They must navigate through a maze of tables and chairs, make selections from a menu, and utilize cutlery, plates and other utensils that may be difficult for them, often in a crowed and noising atmosphere.

The hostess or greeter at a restaurant is the first person at a food-service business who has the opportunity to make a disabled patron feel welcomed.  Here are a few general tips:

• Provide sensitivity training for staff who deal directly with patrons. Many independent living centers can provide in-service training to educate staff on how to address a person with a disability and serve them with respect.
• For instance, servers should address the person directly and not ask their companion about their needs.
• Never assume help is needed. Offer it, but don’t assume it’s need it.
• When possible, allow disabled patrons to choose heir own table. Change the seating arrangement to fit the needs of a person with a walker or wheelchair, not the other way around. Remove a chair or two to allow them access to the table.
• If a service dog is present, don’t insist or suggest the patio or outside seating. Service dogs are trained to remain under the table. They are not unhygienic nor is it a violation of the Health Code for them to be in a restaurant.
• The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) does not permit restricted seating for a patron with a service dog on the basis of someone being allergic. If a nearby patron is allergic to dogs, talk to the dog owner and ask if they would accept a different table, so everyone can enjoy their meal. Usually a small concession will be enough.
• Offering water for the dog is a very good idea.

A few good tips for hearing impaired or deaf patrons is to:

• Have someone on the staff trained to use American Sign Language (ASL).
• Keep note pads and pens available so patrons can read your questions and reply in kind.
• Speak clearly, not loudly. Many deaf or hard of hearing patrons are able to read lips or just need to differentiate your voice from the ambient noise. 

For blind or visually impaired patrons, ask if they need anything. They’ll tell you what their particular needs are. Here are a few tips:

• Use the ‘clock face’ method to orient patrons. Tell them where the glasses and other items are on the table; “Your glass is at eleven o’clock and the salt and pepper is at one o’clock.”
• Braille menus can be made by contacting: http://www.terrareproductions.com/service.php?id=10&gclid=CK6Bn6bDj6QCFQs_bAoddl8pGA
• Provide a large-print plain text menu. These are more easily read by a person with limited vision or one with a handheld video magnifier. The magnifiers often have difficulty discerning type on a brightly-colored photo or background.
• When the food is served, again using the ‘clock face’ method, tell them the location of food on the plate
• Glasses and cups with wide bases are a good idea to avoid being knocked over.
• When it’s time for the check, keep in mind that the blind patron may be paying. Keep a ‘signature card’ on hand. This is a small stiff card with a window for a signature. It will help ensure the patron signs in the correct space.
• When returning change, name each denomination separately as you hand it to them.

For patrons with physical disabilities, here are a few things to consider:

• If a patron with physical limitations needs specific cutlery or tableware, they will usually have it with them.
• They will know what their limitations are and will ask for help if needed.
• They may ask that the meat be cut up before serving, if for instance, they have the use of only one hand.
• Provide plenty of room between tables so wheelchair users can navigate to and from their table without disturbing other diners.

Diabetics and patrons with other dietary issues will benefit from:

• Provide a choice of sugar-free desserts and appetizers.
• Provide a menu supplement with nutritional information on each item.
• Hire chefs with experience in preparing sugar-free, gluten-free, low or salt-free, low-carb foods.
• Provide a selection of alternative side dishes for specific dietary needs.
• Provide sugar substitutes for coffee, (Splenda, Equal, etc.)
• Identify ingredients on the menu that may cause common allergic reactions such as nuts

To the restaurant’s public areas:

• Clear and tactile signage to restrooms should be place on doors and hallway entrances. http://www.terrareproductions.com/service.php?id=10&gclid=CK6Bn6bDj6QCFQs_bAoddl8pGA
• Accessible restroom guidelines are available at: http://www.access-board.gov/adaag/html/adaag.htm
• Provide a pubic telephone at wheelchair height

Fast Food Restaurants:

• Have a printed menu with the same items as on the menu board for persons with visual impairments.
• Have the electronic credit card keypad at an easily-accessible level, with tactile keys.
• Offer to bring the food to the table.
• Return currency while naming the denominations.
• Always ask if they need anything else and give them your name.
• Offer to bus the table for them. This goes a long way to making a disabled patron feel welcome and respected.

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