Aside from sapping our energy and the budget-busting electric bills, the heat has restaurants reeling as diners are choosing to hide from it all.
"This August had the lowest taproom revenues of any summer month in Celestial's almost five-year history," says Molly Reynolds, co-founder and creative director of Celestial Beerworks. The craft brewery in Dallas has been known to host games and events, both at the brewery and occasionally in a field across the street.
Reynolds says it's impossible to nail down exactly what the decline is due to, "from the higher cost of living that everyone is experiencing right now, from a seemingly widespread shift away from craft beer post-covid, or this extreme, unbearable heat.
"All we know is that our cute new patio umbrellas aren't swaying anyone into coming out in these 100-plus degree temperatures," Reynold says.
Not far away, Community Beer Company's vast new biergarten is mostly empty too. While this summer was better for them than last summer (they've added a restaurant to the mix), there's been a reduction in traffic this summer compared to spring, winter and fall.
"And the main reason was the heat," says owner Kevin Carr. "Even though we have cold air blowing, and a wide range of refreshing cocktails including beer, spritzers and frozen drinks, it seems it has been too hot to even walk out to their car."
Guests who do brave the walk inside stick to the tap room; only a few venture out to the deck, where big fans stand little chance. "But it was rare to see anyone in our large biergarten," Carr says.
The late summer hibernation is industry-wide.
OpenTable looks at macroeconomic trends and dining behavior at restaurants. While across the U.S. 33% of diners are eating out more than they did six months ago, in Texas dining out is down compared to the same time last year.
In August 2023, seated diners in Texas were down 5% overall compared to August 2022. So far September is trending down 5% as well. Overall in the U.S. compared with a year ago, dining out is down similarly at 5%.
The average temperature in DFW in August 2023 was 92.9 degrees, the second-highest average since 1899; only August 2011, when it reached 93.4 degrees, was hotter.
Inflation is also taking a bite out of dining habits. The Consumer Price Index measures the change in prices over time. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the 12-month percentage change for the cost of eating out was up 7.1% in July. Eating at home also cost more, up 3.6% compared with last year.
The higher tabs aren't going into restaurateurs' off-shore retirement accounts, however. Costs are up. The New York Times reported in August, "Food prices are much higher than they were a year ago, and costs have been climbing at a faster rate than normal. In the year through July, food prices rose 4.9 percent, down from 5.7 percent in June."
A Melting Pot
The Bishop Arts District neighborhood in Oak Cliff is full of restaurants and bars, often with lots of foot traffic from locals and visitors. Oddfellows is a popular brunch and dinner spot where bar patrons and diners spill out onto the patio to sit under shade trees."For Oddfellows, 50% of our seating is an un-air-conditioned patio, so extreme heat — and especially long stretches of brutally hot days — take an incredible amount of our capacity offline," co-owner Amy Wallace Cowan says. "As a breakfast through dinner spot, sometimes we can bookend our days with a fair amount of patio business, but when it’s 90-plus degrees at 9 a.m. or 9 p.m., there’s not a lot of takers."
Cowan isn't seeing this just at Oddfellows, but also around the corners at Revelers Hall, where she is a co-owner. The New Orleans-inspired bar offers live music that flows into the street through the open front doors.
"So many people discover us [Revelers Hall] when they’re out shopping and strolling through Bishop Arts. The heat dissipates a lot of that foot traffic, making it tricky to keep your volume up," Cowan says.
During the pandemic, Revelers was able to expand with a parklet out front, adding a few tables just beyond the sidewalk. But they learned years ago that to keep the energy high, they needed to keep the space cool. In addition to eight ceiling fans, they recently put in an additional air-conditioning unit.
"We might literally be the coolest spot in the Bishop Arts," Cowan says.
And they pay for it. The July electric bill was $865.
Dog Days
Fletcher's Original Corny Dogs was born at the State Fair of Texas but has since expanded via a food truck at Klyde Warren Park, the green urban space in downtown Dallas. Shaded walking paths, fountains and games are (supposed to be) a respite for hot summer days. The park is flanked by lines of food trucks, including Fletcher's."Our business is 100% reliant on outdoor conditions," co-owner and CEO Aaron Fletcher says. "We did see a substantial drop in customer sales during the months of July and August due to the excessive heat outside. Because we have several fryers running at all times inside the food truck, there were several times we actually had to close in August for the safety of our employees due to high temperatures inside the food truck."
They tried a loyalty rewards program for repeat customers this summer, and it's helping some. But they're hoping September and October cool down and people return to the park.
Not So Easy
Quarter Bar on McKinney Avenue has a large patio and balcony that capture the unique energy of New Orleans. But no matter how cool the vibe is, sweating in a hurricane isn't a part of the Big Easy customers are looking to experience."Being a patio-friendly concept, we clearly experienced a decline in guests willing to sit outside," says Stephanie Hall, a spokesperson for Quarter Bar. "We gave our best effort to cool things down with new fans and misters and invested heavily into new patio coverings to create more shade."
Alas, it was still a tough sell, even with an enhanced summer menu, more TVs, upgraded Wi-Fi and frozen cocktails."The only thing that worked harder than the interior HVAC units were the commercial service techs and companies that struggled to get onsite for repairs as quickly as we needed them." – Stephanie Hall, spokesperson for Quarter Bar and Bread Winners
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"The only thing that worked harder than the interior HVAC units were the commercial service techs and companies that struggled to get onsite for repairs as quickly as we needed them with such a high demand across town," Hall says.
The spot has been able to pull in a "decent" crowd despite the heat, and the owners are grateful to the staff and regulars who supported them through it. Needless to say, they're looking forward to cooler temperatures. The high on Saturday, Sept. 9, is predicted to be a paltry 98 degrees. And in what feels like a Christmas morning puppy with a bow on it, the high next Tuesday is forecast to be 86 degrees. Just imagine.
Until then, every day counts for our local restaurants and the servers propping them up. As a late summer push, go out and support your favorite local restaurant this week.
