CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- With the stay-at-home order expiring Friday, restaurant owners are looking at the potential of being able to resume dine-in services in the near future.

If Gov. Roy Cooper doesn’t extend the order, restaurants could potentially reopen at the end of the month.

Chef Bruce Moffett, who owns Barrington’s, Good Food on Montford, Stagioni, and NC Red in Charlotte would like to welcome guests back to his restaurants.

“I would love to reopen my restaurants. I would love to go back the way things were,” Moffett said.

Since the stay-at-home order in North Carolina has been in place, the Moffett Restaurant Group founder has only been doing takeout at his businesses.

“We have been doing 40 to 45 percent of the busiest that we had been doing until now,” Moffett said.

Johnson & Wales College of Hospitality Management associate professor Donald Schoffstall said it can be challenging for restaurant operators to plan without having a reopening date and new guidelines, such as allowed capacity.

“The key question of when and then the numbers they have to follow are going to be tremendous for them to be able to fully plan," Schoffstall said.  

He added in the meantime, restaurant operators can reach out employees who have been laid off.

“Another challenge potentially though is the restaurant employees got other jobs,” Schoffstall said. “There could be some difficulty bringing all of your existing staff back and there is the employee safety concept. If we are still under a voluntary stay-at-home order, do employees feel safe having to come back?”

Moffett laid off 60 employees during the crisis. He said he has been able to bring some of them back with a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program.

However, he said the rehiring of the rest will be dependent on the number of tables he’ll be allowed to serve.

“If we are only open to a 50 percent capacity, we are not going to be able to bring everyone back,” Moffett said.

According to Moffett, capacity will also play a role on his decision to offer dine-in services as soon as the state allows it.

“I think we are ready to do it. We have to look at the finances of it and see if it makes sense financially,” Moffett said.

The capacity could also have an impact on customer experience.

“You certainly could have increased wait times that you may have never seen before and depending on the amount of staff the restaurant is able to bring back. It could also be slower service,” Schoffstall said.

He added some restaurant operators may set limits on the amount of time patrons spend at restaurants.

Moffett said he’s reaching out to chefs in Georgia and South Carolina to ask them for guidance on their experience reopening their restaurants.