Holidays provide business boom to Ohio restaurant industry
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Ohio restaurant industry leaders said this holiday season will tie a bow on an already successful year for business.
They said this coming week is typically peak time for dining, and if restaurants are not fully booked already, they will be getting to that point soon.
Employees at The Whitney House in Worthington said they’ve watched reservations triple in the last few days.
“People have been starting to reserve the day before Christmas Eve. So our reservations are really high,” said Madison Woodruff, a host at The Whitney House.
They said the days leading up to the holiday weekend have also been anything but slow.
“We have long lists on the waitlist, people waiting an hour and they're totally fine waiting that long just to eat here,” said Riley Woodruff, a host at The Whitney House.
The sisters said they enjoy this busy time and it is great for business. They also have noticed people staying at their tables for a longer amount of time.
“So usually people come in here, they're just a regular like hour and a half. Like yesterday we had someone come in here and sit for like three hours because they just sit here and they just talk and, you know, just talk about their Christmas stuff. We've had a lot of people come in with presents, exchange presents. So a lot of people have just been sitting at their table for a lot longer," Madison said.
The Ohio Restaurant and Hospitality Alliance said this is a trend most central Ohio restaurants are currently seeing.
“I think people who are very festive and they want to go out and they just, you know, they don't want to cook all the time,” said John Barker, the President/CEO, Ohio Restaurant and Hospitality Alliance.
Barker said this time of year is huge for fine dining.
“They may put out some specials, a blue plate special, for example, something different. We're also seeing a lot of drink specials. People are getting very creative with drinks and martinis are in this year," Barker said.
He said casual dining also does well, and in the days after the major holidays, take-out spots are booming.
“The other thing we're going to see is the day after Christmas and then right around new year's, our takeout restaurants are going to be booming and typically pizza. Oh, my goodness. They just really do well," Barker said.
Barker said their national association did some research and it came back that 80% of Americans want to prioritize quality time with friends and family this holiday season. He said a lot of this is coming from the pandemic years, but many consider food to be that gathering piece.
“They want to spend more time with their friends and family, quiet time, things like that. And so it's interesting, as they say, we're open to going out to eat and ordering out and having food delivered and all those things that, you know, allow them to do that,” Barker said.
Barker said 2023 was the first year in a little while that central Ohio has seen more restaurants open than close. He said he’s expecting more of that in 2024.