This Is the Most Popular Time of Day to Eat at the Cheesecake Factory, Executives Say - Eat This, Not That

The Cheesecake Factory has always been a popular weekend dinner destination for American families. But as the chain continues recovering from the pandemic with soaring sales numbers, there seems to be a new super popular time to visit the full-service restaurant known for its versatile menu—lunchtime.

During its most recent earnings call, the company's leadership reported that alongside dinner traffic, lunchtime has been the most popular time to eat at the chain. Also, the chain is seeing a higher demand for its food in the middle of the week than it did before.

RELATED: 4 Major Menu Changes You'll See At the Cheesecake Factory

"One of the things that I would point out that I think is good positive for us is the biggest growth we've had in dayparts, if I look at the most recent trends is the midafternoon," said company executive vice president and chief financial officer Matt Clark. "Lunch was even slightly bigger than dinner, too. […] And then, the other thing I would say is that from a comp perspective, we are seeing outsized performance in the middle of the week."

Those soaring lunchtime sales are likely to, at least in part, come from the fact that Cheesecake Factory has now become a popular destination for takeout. The chain's restaurants are reporting more than double the off-premise sales compared to pre-pandemic times, and according to Restaurant Business, those sales may have grown even as restaurants reopened dining rooms.

The Cheesecake Factory reported a promising recovery trend for its first quarter through March. But it's the company's April numbers that are truly jaw-dropping. FSR Magazine reports that sales have jumped 220% compared to April of 2020, and were also 7% higher compared to the same period before the pandemic in 2019. All this while most of their restaurants still operate at only 60% indoor dining capacity.

For more, check out The Cheesecake Factory Just Made a Big Announcement About Its Menu, and don't forget to sign up for our newsletter to get the latest restaurant news delivered straight to your inbox.

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This Is the Most Popular Time of Day to Eat at the Cheesecake Factory, Executives Say - Eat This, Not That
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