Worldwide, restaurants and eating establishments have taken a beating as lockdown has resulted in closures, changes, and restrictions to what used to be a burgeoning industry. What are the trends in the UAE and Saudi?
- In the past 3 months, 79% of Saudi consumers have eaten out at least once a week
- In the UAE, a high proportion of consumers feel comfortable eating at western chains
- Restaurant attendance in the Middle East is high
As COVID-19 has turned the world on its head, few industries have been as shaken up as that of restaurants and hospitality. Worldwide, restaurants and eating establishments have taken a beating as lockdown has resulted in closures, changes, and restrictions to what used to be a burgeoning industry.
Borderless Access conducted research to understand eating out and ordering-in habits and how these have been shaped – both temporarily and permanently – by the ongoing global pandemic. Unsurprisingly, ordering in has been by far the most utilized activity in recent times. Ordering food for delivery, ordering take-aways from a restaurant, and ordering/collecting food from a fast-food chain has been the top activities globally in the past 3 months, and have been particularly well-utilized in both the UAE and Saudi.