Hit by low footfall, around 50% city restaurants stay closed for dine-in services

On any given day, especially weekends, Pune’s restaurants and pubs would be filled with patrons trying to make the most of their time there, ordering their favourite food or drink. Then, COVID-19 happened.
Now, more than six months after being shut for dining in, the city’s eateries are finally welcoming people inside again. But the response from patrons is lukewarm at best.Customers' inhibitions to step out combined with lack of staff, early closing times and less footfall have forced many establishments to remain shut for some more time.

WFH to changed way of socialising hit restaurants hard, see less footfall
Although eateries had started takeaway services, it was assumed that as they restarted dining in, business would pick-up. But the reality is far from it. Saili Jahagirdar, owner of Zillionth Bistro, Kothrud, says timing has played a huge role in lesser footfall. "Before the pandemic, the eating out and socializing would be at its peak post 10 pm. Now, the deadline is 10 pm, which means people need to step out early and that is a little difficult for those working from home," says Saili. Compared to dine-in, takeaways are doing much better, she adds. "While stepping out we all have to keep a check on the safety measures. For many people, it can be a bummer because you come in a good mood, and all these checks can interrupt the positive vibes. But that’s just how it is now. We all have to be careful,” says Saili.
On the contrary, the food outlets in malls are doing a little better. Kunal Jagwani, owner, Souk by Cafe Arabia, says, “All the security and hygiene checks are done before you enter the mall. Plus, food courts are self-service options. So, People feel safer ordering and eating here. The idea of socialising has changed tremendously and it's going to take some time to return to normal.”

Less manpower, early deadlines become deterrents
According to Ganesh Shetty, president, Pune Hoteliers and Restaurant Association, more than 50 per cent of the city’s restaurants are yet to open for dine-in. “I haven't even opened my restaurants owing to manpower crunch. The staff that returned to their villages amid the pandemic is yet to return. This is one of the major reasons behind other establishments not opening, despite getting ago-ahead from the govt,” he says.
For many pubs and lounges, the deadline is another deterrent. Keshav Naidu of Aufside Sports Bar says, “Bar or lounges start getting most customers post 8 pm. Since the current deadline of 10 pm is not feasible for us to function, we have decided to wait for some more time.”
Even for eateries at malls, this is an issue because their target crowd isn’t around right now. Sanat Sarpotdar from Poona Guest House, which has an outlet at a mall on SB Road, says, “Cinema goers and working professionals contribute over 50–60 per cent of the customers for outlets in malls. Students, another population that brings business, are also at their hometowns. So, even for some outlets at malls, it’s not feasible to function.”
Because there is no specific time frame for those working from home, the weekend crowd has taken a hit. Add the time limitation and we are looking at an even lesser footfall — Prerna Kapoor Kalra, owner, China Grill
Apart from staff crunch, the majority crowd we get are students and IT professionals. Most students are not in the city due to their institutes being closed, and IT persons are working from home, some of them too having gone back to their hometowns. We’ll wait till the end of the month and decide on reopening then — Sandy Singh, partner, Euriska