What will happen to restaurants / cafes

[LaCouleurDeMonCiel]

Pre Covid / COL increase we would eat out as a family 1-2 a week. Eating out would often be spontaneous, places like Bills, Rosas Thai, pizzeria, etc. when we passed one while shopping or because we didn’t fancy cooking.

Now we have stopped the spontaneous meals because the prices are ridiculous. We still go out when we want to go to a specific restaurant or celebrate something but we don’t visit the casual low/mid range places because £100+ is too expensive for a quick ‘not that special’ meal.

Are we the only ones?
Will we see a change in the type of restaurants on the high streets? High end restaurants + cheap fast food ones but nothing in between?

The chains were also propped up by cheap abundantly available debt. As this all comes up for renewal at far higher interest rates, it's another huge cost added to their bottom line, on top of the increase in staff, energy and ingredients costs.

I think more child free people are eating out rather than parents / families - only paying for themselves only costs £25 not £100 so feels much more doable.

I agree. My heart sinks when I see coffee being served in large cups. I'd rather have a small, strong americano than something bigger and weak.

The price of a decent meal out easily exceeds my weekly food shop, so no I don't do it.

Went out in central London last night for a drink after work. Everywhere was jam packed!

Very rare for me to eat out now, only as a treat with friends. The portions have got super small, the costs have increased. (understandable) It just doesn't feel like it's value for money.
My friend and I had two glasses of wine, two starters and a three sides a few weeks ago (between us for lunch) £85! One of the sides was fancy chips, served in a metal bucket 🙄 I bet there was 10 chips and it was over £4.

I can buy really good ingredients or a few M&S ready meals/sides and two bottles of wine for a lot less...

A minimum spend would put me off too!

But 'small cups' might just be smaller than the huge vats you get in Starbucks etc, which IME they fill with nuclear-heated water and/or that's had a bag of coffee beans waved in its general direction.
A flat white, for example, should be served in a 5 or 6-oz cup, which does look small in comparison, but it will taste stronger and nicer. And, if the barista's good, the milk will be a good temperature (hot enough but not scalding) and a nice texture.
I'd personally much rather pay my £3.20 for a really good flat white made by a good barista than pay possibly more for a Starbuck or Costa-type vat.

@OceanicBoundlessness ironically I order a latte when pit as I find cafe coffee is often too strong for me, even with amazing coffee/baristas. Or just an earl grey. But inlike to buy ground coffee from independents when I can afford it at home, so I can control how strong it is.

But 'small cups' might just be smaller than the huge vats you get in Starbucks etc, which IME they fill with nuclear-heated water and/or that's had a bag of coffee beans waved in its general direction.

There are small cups and then there are small cups, as in two gulps and it’s gone. I drink hot chocolate but the coffee was the same. One was a few doors down from my hairdressers and everyone was talking about it when the new tiny cups were introduced. They halved the prawns in their baguettes as well as putting prices up. It closed down a few months later, I felt for the owners, they were lovely but couldn’t t keep up with higher food and fuel bills.

I think there is some truth in this - my DC (both early 20s, one at home, one in their own flat) and they get fast food delivered via deliveroo/just eat all the time. I genuinely don’t think they consider the cost because they’ve got enough money to make do. My DD got a pudding delivered the other night. It was £15 all
in!! A medium sized box of some Oreo/caramel/cream combo. It was delicious to be fair but I’d never have spent that even though I could afford to.

I think maybe that generation got so used to it during the pandemic that they just think it’s part of life.

@MarkWithaC I do think there's a widespread belief that independents are better, or more valuable to have than chains, so I would disagree with you there. Although I would agree that good indie restaurants are probably better than the equivalent priced chains as they offer variety and creativity.

I'm also not convinced that independents employ local people more than chains. The people who work in the local costa are from the same areas as the people who work in the independent cafes. When I call out British Gas to fix the boiler, the man who comes out is local.
I'll be honest, I prefer my local Waterstones to my local independent bookshop - I don't see the latter as being more worthy than the former. But some people feel it's important to support it purely because it is an independent. Even if they're buying the same 'Heartbreaker' book for their dc that Waterstones sells. Totally their prerogative though, since it's their money.

I'm glad your local shop is nice and open late. Maybe I'd not want a closer supermarket if mine was too.
Obviously there's a place for both and yes, it does add interest to a high street, but I don't think they are always as useful or convenient for local populations as chains are.

Swings and roundabouts really.

Still very busy here - small village with a village next to us and a town the other side. Can't get a table on a weekend unless you book early and pubs and bars heaving.

They must love having you as their neighbour, watching all their comings and goings and scrutinising their delivery bags.

Mid range restaurants are still doing well in areas where hotel guests need to have meals. It’s a captive audience - people need to eat and hotels don’t have cooking facilities. They’re doing less well in areas where there aren’t so many tourists and eating out is more of a choice than a necessity. The chain restaurants in my local shopping centre have closed down because people (me included) have stopped treating ourselves to meals because we can’t be bothered to cook at home. We only eat out for special occasions now.

What I said was no one on this thread was saying indies are better per se.

I think it comes down to the choice and variety on offer. Sure, I could buy a 'Heartbreaker' book either from my local bookshop or from Waterstones. But my local bookshop will also have a display of local history books, or something by a local poet, that will catch my eye while I'm in there.

I also think, aside from the facts and stats of where money goes/who is employed etc, having a robust showing of local indie businesses is good for the halo effect – what you call 'adding interest', I suppose, but I think it's more valuable than that.

@LadyBird1973 I think you're maybe misunderstanding that it's not just the people who work directly in the cafes who are employed by independents. Of course chains employ local people to work in the restaurants.
They are highly unlikely though to use other local suppliers, but small independents generally do.
I'd far rather buy locally and know that my money is helping my local community support each other, than spend my money knowing I'm finding some fat cats yacht.
But, as you say, there's a place for everyone.

I'd say what's the pint of gulping down a drink you've paid for! You're renting the table as well as buying a hot chocolate; you've bought a bit of time to sit and enjoy it.

I feel your pain about smaller sandwiches/less generous fillings. That's very common.

We've stopped having occasional meals out as a family, and only go out for birthdays / when visiting elderly relatives because they don't feel the need to cook. Even small items are so expensive. Little cafe at local park has small ice cream tubs for £3.50 each, so just the kids had them last time. Can't justify £14 on 4 ice creams.

Local National trust charges £8 for a sorbet...yes that's English pounds!!

No, just no!

I have bought myself a tin of Costa hot chocolate powder and got about 25 drinks out of it for the same price as I pay for 1 hot chocolate at Costa. So bye Costa.

Also with independents you usually have less staff turnover and therefore better service.

Again this depends on the owner. For all their faults, chains have clearly defined policies and HR departments. With independents you are a bit more at the mercy of how clued up and decent, the owner is.

My local restaurant will:

Call me when I’ve a late table booked to ask if I want the daily special, and keep me a portion when they’ve run out;

squeeze me in when it’s full;

give me a free liqueur/desert from time to time;

cook for me (in my dishes) when I have friends round for dinner;

get my favourite wine in;

invite me to menu/wine tastings.

I do spend a lot of money there, but we work long hours and have no dependent children.

That sounds lovely @AgentProvocateur. I'm starting to think that mine are just a bit rubbish by comparison to what some of you on this thread enjoy.

Having read most of the posts on this thread I'm of the opinion that restaurants and cafes are charging 'what the market will bear' ie, wringing their customers dry.
I have sympathy with their increased outgoings but there is also an element of greed too I think. This will invariably come out as a loss of future customers.