With states imposing curbs such as night curfews to control the fast-spreading Omicron variant of coronavirus, it’s likely to be a quiet New Year’s Eve for most people who are likely to usher in 2022 in the comfort of their homes.
With the restrictions, restaurants are back to drawing boards as they expect a hit on business once again, and are fearing muted business this weekend.
Deepinder Goyal, founder and CEO of Zomato, urged people to encourage the restaurant industry by ordering in on New Year’s Eve.
“Big day today for the restaurant industry. Stay home, stay safe, and order away. We are ready to serve you,” Goyal tweeted on Friday.
Delhi has imposed a night curfew - from 11 pm to 5 am - from December 27 onwards amid the rising number of Omicron cases. Maharashtra too has imposed the curfew from 9 pm to 6 am from December 24.
Restaurants, one of the worst-hit by the pandemic, were hoping for bumper business this December as the second wave of COVID-19 waned and governments lifted restrictions on movement.
Restaurants had reported a quick pick-up in footfalls in October and November as active and new Covid cases subsided and several state governments eased curbs.
According to a recent report by the Retailers Association of India, quick-service restaurants (QSRs) witnessed 29 per cent sales growth in November 2021, compared to the 5 per cent during the same period in 2019 (pre-pandemic).Fine-dining restaurants, too, were near the pre-pandemic numbers in November 2021 and were hoping to grow further in December.
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