100M Americans To Visit Restaurants For New Year's

An estimated 100 million Americans will ring in the New Year either by visiting a restaurant or bar or by ordering takeout or delivery from a foodservice establishment, according to a new study released Wednesday by the National Restaurant Association.

In addition, the study found that half of all adults are planning to celebrate the holidays by dining out with family or friends over the next couple of weeks.

"New Year's is traditionally one of the most popular times of the year to dine out," said Hudson Riehle, the NRA's senior vice president of the Research and Knowledge Group. "This year, we expect to see a welcomed bump in customer traffic both on- and off-premises as we ring in the new year."

According to the survey, 20 percent of consumers are expecting to go out to a restaurant or bar on New Year's Eve, while 22 percent said they intend to place orders for takeout or delivery.

Twelve percent of those polled said they plan to dine out on New Year's Day, and 16 percent anticipate ordering takeout or delivery from a restaurant.

Meanwhile, the study also found that:

• 10 percent of Americans plan to dine out on Christmas Eve.

• 8 percent intend to visit a restaurant on Christmas Day.

• 4 percent said they will go out to a restaurant on Hanukkah, Dec. 20.

The NRA surveyed 1,006 American adults for the study from Dec. 8–11.

Contact Paul Frumkin at paul.frumkin@penton.com.