For no shortage of reasons, quick-service restaurant traffic in Q3 remained on the downward slope, declining 1.2 percent, year-over-year, according to the latest data from Revenue Management Solutions.
Most of this owes to some pot of price (up 3.6 percent compared to 3.4 percent last year quarter) and a consumer limiting frequency in face of inflation—the percentage of respondents who blamed higher costs for increased spending jumped to 72 percent in the quarter from 61 percent the prior.


However, there was a fresh insight to emerge in RMS’ latest data dive.
One potential drag on visits in the wake of COVID owed to workforce transition. Did people return to offices? It’s one reason lunch, in particular, has faced a steep climb back. You can make similar arguments for coffee and breakfast as dayparts more easily replaced at home when people, firstly, stay there for their work, but also, in more recent movement, look to curb their spending somewhere.
What RMS discovered, though, could provide a potential traffic target. It noted respondents overwhelming were dining out less across all segments. Those visiting restaurants more often in the past month minus those going out less, was down 2 percent in quick service; 26 percent in fast casual; and 35 percent in full service. Quick service’s shift to discounts and value meals, RMS pointed out, have minimized declines from a low of negative 5 percent in Q1 to negative 2 percent (seen both in Q2 and Q3). Full-service restaurants, meanwhile, declined from negative 31 percent in Q2 to negative 35 percent in Q3.
There was one group that bucked the trend, as hinted—22 percent of “hybrid workers” reported dining out at fast-food restaurants more than before. They also spent more at restaurants than remote workers, up 8 percent compared to negative 21 percent.

Why this is the case will be a development worth tracking. Perhaps people who go into the office three days a week instead of five, for instance, now use those in-person days to connect with coworkers at lunch. Or maybe they don’t meal prep when they’re not working at home. Either way, it’s a cohort on the rise. A 2023 Gallup survey claimed more than half of employees with remote-capable jobs want a hybrid work arrangement. Also, per CNBC, 90 percent of companies suggest they’ll return to the office by the end of 2024.
It’s a middle ground that could lead to more quick-service occasions.
Getting into additional Q3 trends, RMS data showed younger generations are proving the anchor to quick-service frequency. The percentage of Gen Zers who reported more counter-service visits in the past month jumped from 38 percent in Q2 to 50 percent in Q3.


It also appears the summer’s value race held traffic in check. Those customers ordering more from the value menu increased by 11 percent, quarter over quarter.
How it broke down:
- Dinner traffic: Up 0.4 percent (again, a reflection of the daypart most difficult to swap)
- Lunch: Down 2.5 percent
- Breakfast: Down 2.4 percent, although improving from negative 4.2 percent in Q2

By Channel
- Delivery: Consistently gaining, now 14.7 percent higher, year-over-year
- Takeout: 10 percent above
- Dine-in traffic: Increased by 8.8 percent
- Drive-thru: Holding steady at negative 10.2 percent (from a baseline that spiked out of COVID. Even negative, it’s still higher than pre-COVID by a significant measure)

Survey trends
While delivery continues to grow its traffic, customers are closely monitoring usage. Future outlook, according to RMS, has decreased since Q3 2023.

Going forward, how often do you plan to dine out at restaurants?
- Work from home and office (hybrid): Negative 8 percent
- Work from office only: Negative 14 percent
- Work from home only: Negative 29 percent
One in five remote workers said they were spending less on restaurants. Hybrid workers, to reiterate, were an outlier in that 8 percent said they were now spending more than a year ago. Work from office was also climbing—up 6 percent versus Q3 2023. Work from home declined 21 percent.
And some value resonated, as you can see below. Grocery has begun to turn upward, from a sentiment perspective.

That’s an interesting shift considering the reality food away from home increases remain higher.

More respondents are spending less of their disposable income on restaurants; 40 percent report cutting back compared to last year; 32 percent said they’re paying more; and 28 percent about the same.
As for the reasons, higher prices continue to top the chart.

About half of budget-conscious respondents said they were ordering less often from restaurants.
