Cutting Back on Dining Out: Economic Uncertainties’ Effect on Consumer Dining Behavior

Barring any new global emergencies like the pandemic that caused the demise of restaurant dining, the past few months have seen it return back to life in a tempered manner. For now, gone are the sight of diners being widely spaced out and sometimes separated by sheets of plastic or plexiglass in some areas. 

But now a new threat has emerged that might derail that widespread restaurant recovery. This time the culprit is not some infectious disease, but it has to do with worries about how to pay for the bill. The high inflation rate, debt ceiling news, bank shutdowns, crypto restrictions and the like have contributed to a widespread thinking that in these uncertain times, it is better to tighten one’s belt.

Unfortunately for the restaurant industry, which according to the National Restaurant Association will hire half a million seasonal workers this summer of 2023, this is bad news. According to them, young people form an important component of the restaurant workforce. Almost twenty…