Why would a usually popular restaurant be completely empty now?

[Anonymous]

like whats going on with the economy these days , is some trendy restaurants on the waterfront where i live , May isn't as busy as the summer tourist season but patio's are now open and usually there'd be some people on them but yesterday i was there around 2-3 pm in the day and like literally this one spot which is normally popular there patio was entirely empty like not 1 table

and both sections were empty , is a top and bottom , both the servers were like playing on there phones or doing nothing , the weather was not perfect but not cold or raining , not sure if it got busier later i left to go to the gym

like not a single table? maybe time to talk to the owner about making some changes or figuring out what the issue is

Updates

1 mo

according to google maps its busier now than yesterday but can't see it from where i live to verify but its also Friday so likely more customers than yesterday. but still very odd that there would be days and times of the week when there is literally ZERO customers present especially in May

[AI Opinion]

A place that used to be busy and is suddenly empty usually has a mix of issues, not just “the economy.”

Could be quieter shoulder season, menu price hikes, weaker food quality, slow service, bad recent reviews, new competition nearby, or even parking/roadwork.

At 2–3 pm you also hit a dead zone between lunch and early dinner.

If you know the owner, gently sharing what you’ve noticed and what friends say could help more than vague “change things” advice.

[Asker]

they haven't hiked drink prices , actually have drink specials that start at 3pm but no sign of anyone coming in for them

i agree owner needs actual serious advice on what to do next , vague ideas may not be enough , needs to make serious structural changes to the business to turn things around

its been much slower than normal this May , noticed that on other days , only the long weekend was really busy , very few busy days on there patio so far

[Nikki1989]

High prices, poor service.

[Asker]

not sure they've raised prices although food prices at many restaurants are up , they have some drink specials from 3-6 pm its actually really good price to get a beer there during that time much cheaper than others

owner only seems focused on hiring pretty girls who are like 18-25 , not sure he's focused on customer service , he would not even hire a male server or an older server to work there even if they had an exceptional resume and provided exceptional service

so thats what were dealing with , he would not even hire many qualified servers who can provide exceptional service if there not female and pretty and like 18-25 ish

i'm not even sure what kind of training the new servers are provided with , i saw the one being trained the other day , this really cute/pretty 18 year old girl back home from school , i don't recall the older server mentioned anything about customer service, like she'd show her how to make drinks and use the beer taps and general routine like clean up and beer fridge stocking

but don't recall her mentioning anything about customer service or that aspect

[Abbycado]

Dude, you need to leave these people alone

[Abbycado]

@Agape93

[Asker]

they need to find some customers , i'm not joking there was not a single table on either patio's yesterday , the poor server was standing at bar playing on her phone , i had 1 beer and tried to talk to her but she seemed annoyed so i went to another nearby place and had 1 beer there and server seemed to enjoy my attention more than i went to gym, but i still left them both a tip

[Asker]

not 1 table at 2 - 3 pm in the afternoon on a weekday in May? even the most hardcore skeptics here have to start admitting this place needs help like serious help soon , i wish i took a picture on my phone so people could see how empty the place was when i was there

[Agape93]

Dude its been Yara. Shut the fuck up about them. You're annoying as fuck at this point.

[Agape93]

Years*

[Asker]

@Agape93 was there late afternoon Friday it wasn't very busy only a few tables on main patio had people and girl on upper had none and didn't even realise she was working until she came down to say hi.

i don't think the girls who work there are upset i go there , actually seem to get along with that server really well , were not the same age obviously but we seem to get along and have a connection. i'm pretty sure the manager hates me but she's got the dumbest job to try and run this place with an owner only focused on hiring young women who are pretty.

almost no one would even leave a positive review on google because the server was pretty , if the service and food was not good as well , no one cares if the server is hot if everything else isn't as good
i think some of the girls who work there are just frustrated with the situation as its been a slow start so far and a couple girls from last year did not return but seems like main core is back. i'd imagine restaurant business will pick up as more tourists appear but bar nights may be much harder to resume unless they can really come up with something more interesting soon

[In_Trance]

GTFO restaurant troll

[Asker]

not a single table? , like even if they had 2 or 3 tables they might still be losing money when you put into account staff wages and food costs but how much is owner losing when its ZERO?