July 28, 2022

U.S. consumers decided to limit their trips to restaurants during the second quarter of 2022, reported The NPD Group.

Inflation and the rise in menu prices led to a 2% dip in physical and online restaurant traffic when compared to a year ago and down 6% below the pre-pandemic levels seen in 2019.

“Consumers continue to deal with rising inflation and higher prices. We see three ways consumers respond to higher menu prices. They trade down to lower-priced items, cut back on the number of items ordered, or reduce restaurant visits altogether,” said David Portalatin, NPD Food Industry Advisor and author of Eating Patterns in America. “Operators and manufacturers can win in this environment by differentiating value, understanding that value doesn’t always translate to the lowest price. Quality and value become a critical differentiator when consumers spend on a restaurant meal during these challenging times.”

The NPD Group noted that visits to quick service restaurants (qsr), which represents 82% of total restaurant visits, declined by 2% in Q2. QSR fast casual restaurant traffic was down 1% in the second quarter of this year compared to a year ago, and was up 8% versus the same quarter in 2019.

“Full service restaurant (FSR) visits, representing 18% of restaurant visits, were down 3% in the quarter versus a year ago and declined by 20% compared to the second quarter of 2019,” The NPD Group wrote.

A look at dayparts saw dinner traffic dip by 2% when compared to Q2 2021, lunch drop by 3% and the P.M. snack daypart fall by 6%. However, breakfast remained flat compared to a year ago, faring the best out of the bunch, per NPD.

Consumer restaurant spending, which reflects higher costs in contrast to increased visits, was up 2% in the quarter compared to the same quarter year ago and increased by 3% versus the pre-pandemic second quarter in 2019, per The NPD Group.

Earlier this month, the NPD Group noted recovery in foodservice as dining halls and food courts at colleges witnessed significant recovery as normalcy returned following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The jump in case unit shipments increased by 47% in the 12 months ending May 2022, compared to the previous year when shipments were down by 33%, per the NPD Group. Plus, broadline foodservice dollar shipments to colleges and universities rose by 72% versus last year when dollars shipped declined by 35%.

“After a couple of challenging years, it’s good to see foodservice operations on campuses coming back in full swing,” said Tim Fires, president of NPD’s SupplyTrack. “Campus foodservice directors work hard to understand the latest food trends that appeal to college and university students and rely on foodservice manufacturers to help them in their effort.”

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