Restaurants Fought for Covid Survival, With Some Tech Helpers Being “online” in the pandemic, many chefs learned, meant much more than having an Instagram account. The company that began as Krystle Mobayeni's side project, BentoBox, scaled up significantly in the pandemic to help restaurants.Credit...Gili Benita for The New York Times April 20, 2021, 5:00 a.m. ET The past year has crushed independent restaurants across the country and brought a reality to their doors: Many were unprepared for a digital world. Unlike other small retailers, restaurateurs could keep the tech low, with basic websites and maybe Instagram accounts with tantalizing, well-lit photos of their food.