A third of consumers plan to eat out less when restrictions are lifted
The data shows that 46% of consumers plan to eat out at the same frequency over the next 12 months, while 13% said they planned to eat out more.
In total, 29% plan to eat out less frequently than they did pre-pandemic, with the intention to eat out less often the highest among 45-64 year olds.
Seven percent said they were unsure what they were likely to do, while 5% said they never ate out.
The report comes after the Prime Minister confirmed that hospitality venues will no longer be required to only operate table service and all social distancing restrictions will be scrapped when England moves to the last phase of its Coronavirus lockdown roadmap.
A final decision on whether to go ahead with the last phase of the roadmap will be taken on 12 July, and is expected to come into force a week later on 19 July.
“There is a lot of pent up demand for returning to hospitality without restrictions, but with the virus remaining present there will be a level of anxiety amongst some consumers that will make them more cautious in their return," says Blonnie Whist, insight director at Lumina Intelligence.
"Operators need to reassure consumers that their premises are safe, which may mean keeping in place some of the measures introduced during the pandemic, such as table service and sanitising stations.”
Pubs and bars look set to be the most impacted channel, with 33% of consumers expecting to visit these kinds of venues less often over the next year, seven percentage points higher than for restaurants.
In fact, eating out at restaurants has been one of the most missed activities during the pandemic, according to the survey, second only to meeting family and friends, and was consistent across all age demographics.
Going for a coffee/tea and visiting the pub were the fourth and fifth most missed activities, respectively, while working at people’s usual place of work was the least missed.
Treat-led occasions remained the number one motivator for consumers to eat out, according to the report; up from 16.3% to 18.8% in the 12 weeks to 18 April 2021.
Not wanting to cook remained the second most common reason with a 15.3% share, and choosing to eat out due to being ‘out and about’ was the third at 11.2%.
