| More and more table service restaurant | | | | sirloin offering with salad, baked potato and bread |
| companies are turning to couponing, deep | | | | Ruth's Chris Summer Classic featuring a |
| discounting and reduced services to drive guest | | | | starter, entrée, personal side and dessert |
| counts and survive in these tough times. | | | | all for $39.95 |
| Everyone is fighting for the smaller portion of | | | | These are just a few of the seemingly limitless |
| consumer spending, and studies show that many | | | | options you can find in the restaurant world |
| consumers are trading down to the next pricing | | | | today, not to mention the $5 lunch or $10 dinner |
| tier. For instance, those who used to go to | | | | menu many casual chains offer. |
| Morton's for dinner are now going to TGI Friday's | | | | I think the question of "Will it work?" remains to |
| and those who were going to Chili's for lunch may | | | | be seen. The bigger question for me is, "If it does |
| now be going to Chipotle. The trouble for the | | | | work, what will be the lasting effects?" and "At |
| higher-end restaurants is that there are no diners | | | | what cost?" The only way that these types of |
| trading down to them, and we are seeing | | | | deals can continue to work is if the portions get |
| something that many of us have never seen | | | | smaller and smaller or the quality of the product |
| before - deep discounting and, may I dare say, | | | | lessens. Either way, the industry is setting a |
| even coupons from those high-end eateries. | | | | standard that may haunt them well into the |
| In a market that does not traditionally use deep | | | | future. |
| discounting and coupons to drive sales, outside of | | | | We do not have to look far to see examples of |
| some limited time offers, we are starting to find | | | | how this has affected other industries in the past. |
| deals like these: | | | | The hotel sector is still trying to recover from |
| Morton's is offering two steaks, two choices | | | | price wars and deep discounting that occurred in |
| of seafood, two salads, potato and vegetable as | | | | the early 2000's. They have struggled to get their |
| well as two delicious desserts for $99 | | | | pricing back up to earlier levels or in some cases |
| PF Chang's four-course meal including soup, | | | | even "profitable" levels. Like the restaurant |
| starter, entree and mini dessert as part of their | | | | industry, even the high-end hotels were not |
| 'Chang's for 2′ promotion, which is | | | | immune. Before this last economic slowdown, |
| just $39 | | | | high-end hotels' rates were considerably less than |
| The Palm's is offering a family style dinner | | | | the late 1990's and early 2000's. |
| that serves two to three guests for $69 -or - | | | | It makes me wonder if we will ever look at these |
| their Palm Summer Lobster Event - a 4 pound | | | | restaurants the way we did just one year ago |
| lobster (split for two), 2 salads and a signature | | | | When the economy returns, will the consumers |
| side dish for $89 | | | | still be looking for the "deals?" One would argue |
| Logan's Roadhouse's $13.99 special menu | | | | that these questions are not important if you do |
| features 12 options including steak and seafood, all | | | | not survive to see what the outcome will be. But |
| of which come with two sides, rolls and the | | | | one thing is for sure, it will change the way we |
| bottomless peanut bucket | | | | look at dining out forever. |
| Outback's $9.95 special includes a 6 ounce | | | | |