WHY THE POST-PANDEMIC ERA COULD BE ‘THE ROARING ’20S’ FOR RESTAURANTS

Restaurant operators have been walking through a deep, dark tunnel since March, when the pandemic appeared to change the industry forever. Locations closed. People lost jobs. Owners lost livelihoods and companies they built working 80-hour weeks.

But with the light at the end of this tunnel getting brighter, thanks to the vaccine and easing state restrictions on dine-in service, those that make it could find an environment considerably better than the one they operated in early last year.

Customers will be more eager to eat out than before. There will be fewer locations. The pandemic has also provided an education for many brands on the ability to do takeout. Customers learned how to order from an app or a delivery service. New business models emerged.