Serra where
By Tiffany Hsu
February 27, 2012, 12:32 p.m.
Restaurant visits have fallen across the country since the recession, and the bulk of those lost customers – 87% – abandoned independent eateries.
Americans ate out 60.6 billion times last year, according to research company the NPD Group. That’s down from 62.7 billion in 2008 and flat compared to 2010.
Of the 2.1 billion visits lost, 2 billion would have been to independent establishments.
Instead, consumers are patronizing larger restaurant chains, which have added 4,511 units since 2009. But from fall of 2008, more than 7,000 independent eateries have closed. Last year alone, visits to chain restaurants were up 1% while meals at standalone businesses slumped 4%.
Small restaurant operations now make up 27% of the U.S. restaurant industry after steadily losing market share to chains.
“Independent restaurant operators have neither the money nor resources that the chains have,” says Bonnie Riggs, an analyst with NPD in a statement. “They lacked the marketing power to drive traffic and the monetary buffer to get through the difficult times during the past several years.”
get a life
one of my favorite podcasts, comedy bang bang, is coming to ifc soon. while there are a number of similarities between the two formats, im glad to see the show goes beyond what they podcast normally does. the host cut his teeth as a writer on mr. show and is plugged into the upright citizen brigade world so expect that sort of humor. this isnt great but it shows some potential.
zuckerbergs harvard roommate buys the new republic.
$otheby's kassay
dontcha hate it when...
"Places We Like: The Green Goddess (New Orleans)"
a little tibet goes a long way.
im putting my money on him landing in tennessee.
turns out i will gladly suffer through my dentists story about his daughter telling him in his late 50s that it was time to retire his speedos if he will perform a 5 minute procedure for free. i just wish there was a fee chart for future visits that i could choose from. god only knows what a root canal would cost but i imagine that a story about inappropriate touching from a high school gym teacher might be involved.
the lively morgue -- ny times photo archive tumblr
