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Source: www.pizzamarketplace.com, April 2021
To get the COVID-19 global pandemic under control in March 2020, the U.S. government restricted on-premises dining at roughly 70% of all U.S. restaurants. By the last week in March of that year, customer transactions at major restaurant chains had fallen by 43% and 77% at full-service brands. The industry, however, is seeing light at the end of the tunnel, according to NPD Group’s CREST Performance Alerts, which provides a weekly view of chain-specific transactions and share trends for 75 quick service, fast casual, midscale and casual dining chains representing 53% of the commercial restaurant traffic in U.S.
As of March 2021, with the lifting of restrictions and more consumers vaccinated, customer transactions at major restaurant chains were up 32% but down 6% compared to two years ago. Major chain transactions at full-service restaurants were up 210% this March compared to last year, which was down 25% compared to 2019.
Quick service restaurant chains, many of which had well-developed off-premises services, like drive-thru and carry-out prior to the pandemic, have fared better than full-service restaurants this past year, according to David Portalatin, NPD food industry adviser and author of Eating Patterns in America.
Customer transactions at quick-service restaurant chains declined 40% by the end of March 2020 compared to the same period in 2020. In March 2021, QSR transactions were up 29% compared to a year ago and down 5% compared to March 2019.
“There is now optimism on the part of the American consumer, which helps to unleash pent up demand for dining out,” Portalatin said in a company press release. “Although transactions are still down compared to pre-pandemic times, there is improvement and a signal that we’re headed in the right direction on the road to recovery.”
