Part of the joy and wonder of traveling is trying new food and restaurants. Chances are, many of us make long lists of the cafes, bars, and restaurants that we want to go to on our next trip, whether we're going to a city in our same country or heading over to Europe.

The spread of Covid-19 has changed our everyday lives and one big thing is that we, of course, can't travel right now. No one has any idea how long these closed borders and travel bans will be in place as we're not sure when it'll be safe to go on trips again. Many people have unfortunately and tragically lost work as a result of the coronavirus, and one industry that is in a tough spot right now is the restaurant industry.

Here is everything that you can do to support struggling restaurants during Covid-19 (before you can travel again).

Order Take-Out To Support Local Restaurants (Or Order Products Online From Places Further Away)

Yes, it's true that you can't go to your local bar or pub, pull at a chair at your favorite table and order the same thing that you always get (despite wanting to be more adventurous and try something new). But what you can do is order take-out to support local restaurants. According to CNN, it's safe to buy take-out: the website explains, "it's a good idea to disinfect the takeout containers and wash your hands afterward, says Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent. Ordering takeout also helps restaurants and delivery drivers who may be losing money during the pandemic."

Chef Vivian Howard, who owns Chef & the Farmer in Kinston, North Carolina, posted on her Instagram that the restaurant would be offering curbside pick-up and locals could still come and get some food to take home. Someone commented on the restaurant's social media page and made a really smart suggestion: "If you don't live close enough to order takeout, consider ordering rubs, sauces, and t-shirts from the online store!" This is a great thing to remember: you can try ordering some food or merchandise from a restaurant's website if it's applicable. Some places have hot sauces or other food products. For example, many breweries or pubs sell clothing such as t-shirts and sweatshirts.

Buy Gift Certificates To Use At A Later Date

If you're wondering what you can do to support struggling restaurants before you can travel again, consider buying gift certificates to use at a later date. This is super helpful as you'll be putting money in the hands of people who need it right now.

There's even a website that is all about this practice: Tech Crunch says that Mike Krieger, one of the co-founders of Instagram, created a website called Save Our Faves. People living in the Bay Area will be able to buy gift certificates. This is a really wonderful idea. You could definitely get some gift cards for your local restaurants and also for some places that you want to visit at a later time. If there's a restaurant in another city or country that you want to support and you're not sure how to do so online, reach out to them via their contact form on their website or send a DM on Instagram. They would definitely be happy and touched to hear from you and you could work something out.

Make A Donation To A Restaurant

What about making a donation to a restaurant? This would be something that would definitely help. According to Global News, a Houston couple actually gave a tip of $9,400 to the staff of a restaurant. They wrote, "Hold tip to pay your guys over the next few weeks."

While most of us don't have that kind of cash to spare, we can definitely consider a donation that feels right to us. We can think of the money that we would spend on a few restaurant meals if we were going on vacation in the next few months, and give that to some restaurants. It's going to help their employees and it's a good deed that will have a ripple effect as we could mention it on social media and others will be inspired and motivated to do the same thing.

While the spread of Covid-19 isn't an easy time for anyone, there are many people in certain industries who are being affected more than others, and that includes those who own and work for restaurants. Before we can travel again and try new restaurants, we can follow these ideas for how we can help the employees of this industry during this time.