Charleston Restaurant Report January 2017
ON THE MENU1. Green Scene – WILL BUYING ENERGY-EFFICIENT KITCHEN EQUIPMENT MAKE AN IMPACT ON YOUR BOTTOM LINE?2. Local Restaurant News – NEW RESTAURANT PROJECT TRAIN KEEPS ON CHUGGIN'3. Restaurant Openings, Closings and Coming Soon!4. National Restaurant Trends – LIGHT RESTAURANT USERS HOLD THE KEY TO UNLOCK MORE SALESGREEN SCENEWILL BUYING ENERGY-EFFICIENT KITCHEN EQUIPMENT MAKE AN IMPACT ON YOUR BOTTOM LINE?The National Restaurant Association profiled a recent case study of restaurant energy consumption in Boulder, CO. The results were not clear cut. Many varying factors, such as conceptual differences, high restaurant turnover, and long ROI periods make it difficult to analyze restaurant energy usage over time. The takeaways are that energy-efficient kitchen equipment will positively impact your bottom line in immediate energy savings, but it may take awhile to recoup your equipment investment. Read more here....LOCAL RESTAURANT NEWSNEW RESTAURANT PROJECT TRAIN KEEPS ON CHUGGIN'Back in April, this Report noted that there were roughly three dozen restaurant projects in various phases of development. Nine months later, that number has crept up to over forty new restaurant projects in development around the area. I don't pretend to know of every project going on, so the actual number of projects is most likely even higher. It's certainly a competitive restaurant marketplace, and it's not getting any less crowded.RESTAURANT OPENINGS, CLOSINGS + COMING SOON!The following list reflects 4th Quarter 2016 market activity (October - December 2016):OPENINGS --Arby’s (Mt. Pleasant – reopened)Avila (Downtown – former Ladles)Bellacino’s (Summerville)Bojangles (N. Charleston)Charles Towne Fermentory (West Ashley)Chipotle (Mount Pleasant)Elements Social Bar (Mt. Pleasant – former SIP Tap Room)Tap Room 805 (James Island – former SIP Tap Room)Goat.sheep.cow.north (Downtown)Honky Tonk Saloon (Ladson – former Ocean Cowboys)Joey Tomatoes (Mt. Pleasant – former The Kitchen)JohnKing Grill & Bar (Downtown – former Joe Pasta)Kingdom (Downtown – former Charleston Beer Works)Manny’s Grille (W. Ashley – reopened)Napa (Mt. Pleasant – former Hatchell’s)Pawpaw (Downtown – former Wet Willie’s)Pizza King (Downtown – former Dell’z Deli)Poke Tea House (Downtown – former Bull St Gourmet)Pounce Cat Café (Downtown)Revelator Coffee Company (Downtown)Scarecrow (Downtown)SOL (Summerville)Starbucks (Downtown)Swig & Swine (Summerville)Top Dawg Tavern (Summerville)Tropical Smoothie Café (Mt. Pleasant – former Fountain Cafe)Wine & Company (Downtown)CLOSINGS --Cove Oyster Bar & Grille (N. Charleston)DeSano Pizza (Downtown)Joe Pasta (Downtown)Lee Lee’s Hot Kitchen (Downtown)Locklear’s (Folly Beach)Starbucks (Downtown)Stereo 8 (James Island)Taco Mamacita (Sullivans Island)The Granary (Mt. Pleasant)The Kitchen (Mt. Pleasant)The Westendorff (Downtown)Uncle Maddio’s Pizza Joint (N. Charleston)Wild Wing Café (Downtown)Wise Buck (Downtown)COMING SOON --Clean Eatz (Mt. Pleasant – former Morgan’s Market)Famulari’s Pizzeria Brew Pub (James Island)Fatty’s Beer Works (Downtown)Jim N’ Nicks BBQ (Mt. Pleasant – former Applebee’s)Sorghum & Salt (Downtown – former Two Boroughs Larder)Stella’s (Downtown – former The Westendorff)NATIONAL RESTAURANT TRENDSLIGHT RESTAURANT USERS HOLD THE KEY TO UNLOCK MORE SALESAccording to research by The NPD Group, restaurant industry traffic decreased in the most recent quarter for the first time in six years. Amid slowing traffic, it's essential for operators to increase customer visits, especially with light users (1 visit per week) and super-light users (less than 1 visit per week). The NPD Group research shows that those two groups comprise 47% of all restaurant customers, and they tend to spend more per visit than your more frequent customers. Find out more about this topic in Nations Restaurant News . Savvy operators are customizing their marketing efforts to increase light user traffic and boost overall sales.