Detroit's Weekday Lunch Business Hurting

Firebird Tavern in downtown Detroit (Facebook photo)

Running a restaurant has never been easy. But things have gotten even more challenging since COVID.

Crain's Detroit Business reporter Jay Davis reports:

Detroit’s weekday lunch business has collapsed since the COVID-19 pandemic, with traffic at full-service restaurants down more than half as hybrid work schedules, fast-casual competition and shifting coWnsumer habits redefine midday dining.

Restaurant owners and industry insiders point to the same conclusion: the traditional sit-down “business lunch” is no longer the reliable revenue stream it was before the pandemic began in early 2020.

“Traffic is less than half of what it was in 2019,” said David Portalatin, senior vice president and industry adviser for food and foodservice at Circana, a Chicago-based consumer analytics firm. “We saw it improve immediately after the pandemic, but it never fully came back.”

Crain's reports that the change is forcing restaurants in the region to rethink staffing, menu design and hours of operation.