Alberta restaurants will reopen for dine-in service as early as Thursday, and the provincial government has released comprehensive guidelines in anticipation of their opening.

The two-page document covers everything from social distancing to sanitization processes.

Guidelines include:

• operating at no more than 50 per cent capacity
• placing tables at least 2 meters apart; where this isn't possible (e.g. adjoined booths), barriers should be installed
• allowing a maximum of six people at one table
• removing of all condiments from the table
• thoroughly sanitizing tables between customers
• enforcing masks for waitstaff that cannot be protected by distancing
• marking the floor with physical distancing signage where line-ups frequently occur
• scrapping all buffet and self-service
• scrapping all recreational activities, including dancing on dance floors, VLT play, billiards, pool tables, karaoke, shisha, hookah and water pipes, and other activities

Alberta is the second province in Canada to release guidelines for restaurants that are opening again, following in Manitoba's footsteps, who released a list of regulations ahead of reopening patios on May 4.

Notably, both provinces did not include some of the more extreme measures that other countries have introduced, such as temperature checks and health questionnaires.

Alberta has also released guidelines for hair salons, museums, retail businesses, places of worship, day camps, and a number of other sectors as part of its reopening plan.