'Thursdays are the new Fridays' as work-from-home Brits change dining habits

Thom Elliot, the co-founder of Pizza Pilgrims, said dining behaviour had changed with the onset of hybrid working

The co-founder of Pizza Pilgrims, Thom Elliot, has suggested that more people are choosing to dine out on Thursday and Sunday evenings due to hybrid working.

Thom Elliot, the co-founder of Pizza Pilgrims, said that Fridays have become "tougher" for hospitality firms due to a shift in post-Covid working patterns. Elliot said: "I think the ‘treat meal’ in the week still exists," but added: "We’ve definitely seen a change in the make-up of that week – Thursdays are now commonly accepted as the new Fridays."

This shift has made trading tougher on Fridays, a day when hospitality firms previously enjoyed some of their strongest sales. Nevertheless, Mr Elliot said Saturdays were “much bigger” than pre-Covid, while there was evidence to suggest that more people are eating out on a Sunday night.: "I’m allocating this to the mindset of; ‘I don’t have to go to the office on Monday morning, so if I’m a little bit slower out of the gates, that’s probably okay’."

Pizza Pilgrims operates around 25 restaurants in the UK, including in London, Leeds, Brighton and Cardiff. The company recently revealed its pre-tax profit more than doubled to £700,000 in the year to June 2023, with revenues growing by over a third to £29m.

Mr Elliot highlighted a "goldrush toward neighbourhood areas during Covid" as eateries opened to cater to locals staying home. However, he noted that footfall has largely reverted to pre-pandemic figures, with bustling city spots like London’s West End "back and busier than ever".

The Pizza Pilgrims co-founder, who launched the brand with his brother James in 2012, revealed that customers typically spend around £16 to £17 per visit at their pizzerias. The casual dining sector has seen a number of new entrants growing rapidly in recent years, with pizza chain Franco Manca founded in 2008 and growing to operate more than 70 restaurants across the UK.

However, some chains are struggling with post-pandemic challenges, rocketing food and energy prices, and consumers bracing against the cost-of-living squeeze. This month saw the UK operator of TGI Fridays enter administration, currently seeking a buyer for its 87 restaurants.