Late night dining at restaurants is back

You’ve probably seen all the news: When it comes to dining reservations in some of the country’s most restaurant-obsessed cities, 5 p.m. is the new 8 p.m. The lifestyle changes caused by the pandemic have led to a shift in our eating habits, inspiring more and more people to eat earlier than ever before; Early risers have never experienced such a wide range of ages. And since a restaurant’s business can soon slow down after the 7 p.m. rush, many who previously didn’t lock their doors until midnight or beyond announce last orders for dessert as early as 9 p.m. But night owls craving a night out will be thrilled to know that not every restaurant out there has subscribed to this new menu plan. In fact, some restaurants are banking on a late-night resurgence.

Chef Colby Rasavong of Nashville’s year-old Bad Idea, a Laotian restaurant in an old church, says, “After the pandemic, everyone wanted to go out, but the list of options for late-night dining had become smaller.” For us [to stay open until 1 a.m.] was an opportunity to get back in shape.” At this wine-focused dining room in East Nashville, Rasavong serves a special late-night menu from 10 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. He says he wants to “reduce any expectations of our dinner menu” and instead serve bites like snacks that allow guests to take full advantage of their unique space. This makes it easy to walk around while holding a fried bologna sandwich and doing a double fist pump Galabaoa Laotian dumpling full of pork and egg.

Returning to the carefree atmosphere of a pre-pandemic world was also an inspiration for Ryan Fitzgerald, one of the owners of ABV in San Francisco. “We’ve been open for 10 years, and before the pandemic, our kitchen was open until 1 a.m. every day, when people regularly ate later,” he explains, adding that it was important for them not to get too busy after reopening change after Covid-related lockdowns. This mural-adorned mission boîte stays open until 2 a.m. and the kitchen churns out pork tacos, ceviches, and octopus a la plancha until midnight.

Fitzgerald says the last 30 minutes of her kitchen work are usually some of the busiest, as people try to figure out what might still be open in San Francisco. “People come from all over the city to grab one last drink and a burger,” he says. And while he can’t say it works for everyone — after all, most people still eat dinner earlier — he says being one of the few nightspots around has definitely helped his business.

ABV is a bar that serves a fantastic (and extensive) menu, so it’s no big surprise that the doors stay open late. But a restaurant with tasting menus like Cariño in Chicago is also successful in the late-night business. From 6 to 10 p.m., they serve a 14 to 16 course menu with flavors from across Latin America. From 10 p.m. to midnight, service switches to a 10-course taco omakase restaurant, which took a seat at 8:30 p.m., which was regularly the least popular booking of the evening. Today, chef Norman Fenton says the taco omakase constantly sells out, adding that you have to book about a month in advance if you want a weekend reservation.

For Fenton, this guaranteed sales has been incredibly helpful to his bottom line, but perhaps more importantly, the introduction of omakase has allowed him to creatively flesh out his sustainability efforts. “We are able to use by-products from our tasting menu and convert them into products for the late-night menu, which significantly helps us reduce our waste and food costs,” he says.

And for diners, Cariño’s omakase sessions offer an almost entirely different restaurant experience. “The late night energy is super cool,” Fenton adds. “People chat while Control Machete and Bad Bunny tramp around in the background; the hustle and bustle in the kitchen – it’s like a rock show late at night. As a result, we have a lot of regular guests.”

With late night crowds just beginning to grow, mood and energy are crucial to enticing them to stay awake past those earlier bedtimes. Bad Idea’s beverage director, Alex Burch, says being playful and creative during these hours helps attract people to these hours. One of their strategies was a series of late-night takeovers in collaboration with local chefs. “For example, Ryan Poli from Iggy’s took his amazing garlic bread and put crab rangoon stuffing in it,” says Burch. “These events have received strong support from restaurants across the city.”

While creating a special menu or building buzz programs isn’t necessary, some shift-specific specials can help generate interest. At Superiority Burger in New York City, which is open until 1 a.m. on weekends, there is a standard menu at all service hours, but chef/owner Brooks Headley says he also offers a handful of late-night specials could. Night hours: individually prepared pizzas, sometimes tiramisu, a bowl of tortoni, cheap drinks and bottled specials. He says they even occasionally auction Linguini Pomodoro over the loudspeaker for those in the mood for something heartier.

Many restaurateurs championing this late-night trend say they’re also doing so for a specific demographic: other food professionals looking for a great place to eat, drink and have a good time . According to Fitzgerald, most of the ABV Graveyard Shift guests are friends in the industry. And Headley says: “It can be busy late in the evening, it can be quiet in the late evening, but no matter what, it’s always an oasis in the neighborhood.” If I didn’t always work there, it would be my favorite place to go Depend.”