Terrorism fears hurting restaurants? Ask London operators

Fears of a terrorism attack on restaurants like the ones in Paris last month kept enough patrons home to decrease sales in London establishments by 1.5 percent, according to a new study.

The decline was directly attributed by the researcher, the Coffer Peach Business Tracker, to consumer concerns roused by the Paris attacks. The results provide a preview of what U.S. restaurateurs could expect if a domestic terrorism attack should involve restaurants.

The study found that the drops in traffic and sales were particularly steep for chain restaurants.

Elsewhere in the country, sales edged up year-over-year by 0.3 percent, according to the Tracker.

Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.

Multimedia

Exclusive Content

Financing

Despite their complaints, customers keep flocking to Chipotle

The Bottom Line: The chain continued to be a juggernaut last quarter, with strong sales and traffic growth, despite frequent social media complaints about shrinkflation or other challenges.

Operations

Hitting resistance elsewhere, ghost kitchens and virtual concepts find a happy home in family dining

Reality Check: Old-guard chains are finding the alternative operations to be persistently effective side hustles.

Financing

The Tijuana Flats bankruptcy highlights the dangers of menu miscues

The Bottom Line: The fast-casual chain’s problems following new menu debuts in 2021 and 2022 show that adding new items isn’t always the right idea.

Trending

More from our partners