Five years ago, the world as we know it changed.

With the first stay-at-home orders in Canada being enforced mid-March 2020, some businesses adapted to work-from-home protocols.

Restaurants were considered an essential service that remained open but under tight restrictions and so they needed creativity to keep the lights on and rent paid.

Before the pandemic, the food service industry rode a high. Between 2008 and 2018, the sector's GDP growth led all major Canadian industries.

In 2020, total food…