USA TODAY International Edition
Table linens
Varanese told The Courier Journal.
Varanese’s linen provider, Louisvillebased Universal Linen, said about a quarter of the company’s business comes from medical facilities. It neutralizes bacteria by the use of high temperatures at multiple stages in its industrial- grade cleaning process, CEO Tom Austin said. The cleaned linens are wrapped in clear plastic and heatsealed, then transported in trucks that are sanitized daily.
“We think public health officials are doing a good job of informing Kentuckians of what’s going on in the state,” Austin told The Courier Journal. “We just want them to know that table linens and napkins are a safe, hygienic, clean and sanitary solution to protect patrons in restaurants.”
Austin’s family- owned business can trace its roots in Louisville to 1896. In ordinary times, Universal Linen employs 220 people across facilities in Kentucky, Indiana and Tennessee, Austin said. Every week they wash an average of 290,000 pounds of table linens, medical and lodging linens and uniforms.
Most of that operation has ground to a halt during the pandemic. With many elective surgeries on hold and the hospitality industry in tatters, Universal Linen workers are on furlough.
For now, Varanese is interpreting the state’s use of the word “should” in its requirements to mean that table linens aren’t banned outright. But Stacy Roof, president and CEO of the Kentucky Restaurant Association, said she’s asking the state for the language on table linens to be removed or clarified as a recommendation.
“Our members really know their establishments,” Roof told The Courier Journal. “We feel like they should have the ability to decide what’s best in the situation.”
For some that could mean finding a disposable option that is also elegant.
Anne Shadle, general manager and co- owner of Mayan Cafe in NuLu, which doesn’t plan to reopen for carryout until May 28, said she’s looking into finding black paper napkins to match her restaurant’s dining room. After all, tables are just the backdrop, she said.
“Most of the attention needs to be put on having good quality food,” Shadle told The Courier Journal. “If you don’t have that, at this point, you don’t have much else because we’re taking away all of the other elements.”