Restaurant-goers are responding with commendable common sense to the current economic downturn in ways that have striking similarities to the early 1980s, when I naively opened my restaurant, the early 1990s, and the period after the dotcom boom and 9/11.

The most obvious manifestation of this can best be labelled “a flight to conservatism”. With reduced funds to spend, customers do not want to be disappointed and so they, consciously or subconsciously, make a point of returning to restaurants where they have already eaten well or been warmly looked after. This trend is not confined to restaurants, of course, but it does make life even more challenging for anyone just opening a new restaurant.