“The number of lunch transactions was 39 percent last week compared to the situation before the start of the coronary crisis,” said Edenred CEO Nicolas Eich. This is significantly less than a year earlier, when after the first lockdown, the restaurant gardens opened on May 11, 2020. At that time, the number of lunch payments was just over 50 percent of the pre-Eid state.
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“It clearly shows how much it takes to open the interior,” Eich added.
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The Czechs spent less on food from the windows
During closed restaurants, people attended lunchtime windows, which some restaurants operated during the lockdown. However, they had to consume food at home or in the office.
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However, last week after the gardens were opened, the number of lunch transactions increased by only three percent compared to the previous week, when the gardens were still closed. This is also a change compared to last year, when the end of the first lockdown brought a strong recovery.
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“However, this is primarily due to the weather, which in May 2020 was significantly more favorable for the opening of gardens compared to the rainy week from May 17, 2021,” added Eich.
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But even a slight recovery has brought one positive change for restaurants. People who go out to eat in the garden spend more than those who have food brought home. The average amount of one payment for lunch last week climbed to 139.90 crowns, which is 1.90 crowns more than the average in April this year.
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“You usually don’t order drinks from the delivery, yes in the garden. And this will immediately be reflected in a higher payment, “said Jakub Ryba from Edenred.
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According to his expectations, with better weather and the opening of the interior, lunch spending will go up significantly again, similar to last summer, when we paid an average of almost 137 crowns for one lunch.
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After opening the interior, the pubs are also calling
According to current data from Plzeňský Prazdroj, in the first week the gardens of over eight thousand pubs and restaurants, where Prazdroj supplies beer, were open. That’s 26 percent more pubs and restaurants than soon after the first lockdown last May.
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“The last lockdown was very long. For the pub, therefore, the possibility to open at least the gardens represents a boost and a partial return to normal. Most of them can no longer afford to wait, they must try. This is one of the reasons why many more gardens have opened during the first week than last year after 11 May after the first wave of closures, “added Tomáš Mráz, Sales Director of Plzeňský Prazdroj.
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However, compared to the same period of the pre-Jewish year 2019, a quarter fewer companies are open. “There are still some operators and owners of pubs and restaurants who have not yet opened. Either because they don’t have a garden, or just a partial opening doesn’t pay off. The entire gastrosector can thus get back on its feet only after the interior has been completely loosened and opened. Garden gardens are simply not enough, “added Mráz.
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A drop of more than a third
The volume of draft and tank beer that the pubs ordered from Prazdroj for the first week after opening was 36 percent lower than in the same period before the covid.
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“We need to open our internal operations as soon as possible, albeit with restrictions. But we can handle that. We are now fighting for every customer, if this year were the same as last year, it would be really bad, “said Martin Kružík, operator of the Tusto Titanium restaurant in Brno.
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The vast majority of restaurants from those that do not have gardens or have not yet opened are preparing to restart after another wave of dismantling.
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“There are hundreds of establishments that have closed or are about to close due to covid. The taste of pubs to continue is high. They are all betting on the summer season, which would help them at least slightly erase the losses from the last year. But it is important that they remain open permanently, otherwise there would be many more of those who end up, “Mráz added.
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Poll
Have you visited any of the restaurants after reopening the garden?
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