US Restaurants Start Subscription Services to Reach More People

US Restaurants Start Subscription¹ Services to Reach More People

Many Americans make monthly payments, called subscription fees, to receive services for movies, music, and even household goods. Now some restaurants are hoping that they want to do the same for their favorite meals.

Large companies like Panera and P.F. Chang's and small neighborhood restaurants are increasingly experimenting with the subscription model to bring in diners. Some offer unlimited² drinks or free delivery for a monthly fee; others will bring out your favorite appetizer³ each time you visit.

They are following a trend. The average American had 6.7 subscriptions⁴ in 2022, up from 4.2 in 2019, says Rocket Money, a personal finance⁵ website.

Gravitas is a costly⁶ restaurant in Washington, D.C. For $130 a month, Gravitas Supper Club subscribers get a three-course takeout meal for two people. The restaurant provided takeout during the pandemic, but demand dropped once its dining room reopened to the public. The Supper Club — which serves about 60 diners per month — keeps the service going.

Matt Baker⁷ is the chef, or top cook, at Gravitas. He said, "This is just another way for customers to provide a level of support and joy and love for our offerings."

The nationwide restaurant group P.F. Chang's also saw a chance to increase to-go orders with its subscription plan. Last September, it launched a member service for $6.99 a month which includes free delivery.

St. Louis-based Panera launched a subscription program in early 2020. It offered unlimited coffee and tea for $8.99 per month. Customers started coming in several times a week, and about one-third of the time they bought food. Last year, Panera expanded its subscription plan. Now, members can pay $11.99 per month for unlimited hot and cold drinks.

Eduardo Luz of Panera said members now make up 25 percent of the group's transactions⁸. "It's a huge traffic driver," Luz said.

El Lopo, a San Francisco bar, has 26 members in its Take-Care-Of-Me Club. They pay either $89 per month for $100 in dining credits or $175 per month for $200 in credits. When members come in, El Lopo starts bringing out their favorite dishes. On each visit, they can give a free drink to anyone in the bar.

El Lopo owner Daniel Azarkman started the club in March 2021 to bring people back after the pandemic. Now, he is hearing from restaurants all over the country that are interested in starting similar programs. "What it really achieves is getting them in more often," he said.

Rick Camac leads industry relations at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City. He expects many more restaurants to offer subscriptions in the coming years. Customers are used to subscriptions and the monthly income helps restaurants.

Not all restaurants have had success

But not all subscription programs have had success. In 2021, On the Border Mexican Grill⁹ introduced its Queso Club. The plan offered free cheese dip for a year for $1, but the program stopped taking new subscribers a year later.

Edithann Ramey, On the Border's chief marketing¹⁰ officer, said more than 150,000 people signed up for the Queso Club. Members visited seven times more often than the average diner. But the group was not making enough money to cover the cost of the dip. The company expects to raise the price of the service and reintroduce it later.

Other restaurants have ended subscriptions, saying they are just too busy providing food.

In late 2020, SheWolf, a high-priced Italian restaurant in Detroit, started sending subscribers a box of pasta, sauces and other foods for $80 per month. But when its dining room fully¹¹ reopened six months later, it was too much work to put together hundreds of boxes. The restaurant now sends Italian wines to about 80 subscribers who pay $60 or more each month.

The idea of subscriptions has spread to other countries.

Pret A Manger launched its coffee subscription in Britain in 2020. As of November, it was being used 1.2 million times a week and the group plans to introduce subscriptions for its businesses in France and the U.S.

Words in This Story

diner –n. a person who eats at a restaurant

appetizer –n. a small dish of food that is served before the main part of the meal

trend –n. the direction of change for an activity or behavior of people

three-course –adj. describes a meal in which three main parts are served

customer –n. anyone who pays for goods or services

to-go –adj. describing a (food) product that is meant to be picked up at a story and taken home to be used

achieve –v. to reach a goal through work

1 subscription   

n.预订，预订费，亲笔签名，调配法，下标（处方）

参考例句：

• We paid a subscription of 5 pounds yearly.我们按年度缴纳5英镑的订阅费。
• Subscription selling bloomed splendidly.订阅销售量激增。

2 unlimited   

adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的

参考例句：

• They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
• There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。

3 appetizer   

n.小吃，开胃品

参考例句：

• We served some crackers and cheese as an appetizer.我们上了些饼干和奶酪作为开胃品。
• I would like a cucumber salad for an appetizer.我要一份黄瓜沙拉作开胃菜。

4 subscriptions   

n.（报刊等的）订阅费( subscription的名词复数 )；捐款；（俱乐部的）会员费；捐助

参考例句：

• Subscriptions to these magazines can be paid in at the post office. 这些杂志的订阅费可以在邮局缴纳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Payment of subscriptions should be made to the club secretary. 会费应交给俱乐部秘书。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 finance   

n.财务管理，财政，金融，财源，资金

参考例句：

• She is an expert in finance.她是一名财政专家。
• A finance house made a bid to buy up the entire company.一家信贷公司出价买下了整个公司。

6 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

7 baker   

n.面包师

参考例句：

• The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
• The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。

8 transactions   

处理( transaction的名词复数 )； 事务； （一笔）交易； [复数]（学术团体等的）议事录

参考例句：

• a system of paperless business transactions 无纸商业交易系统
• financial transactions between companies 公司之间的财务往来

9 grill   

n.烤架，铁格子，烤肉；v.烧，烤，严加盘问

参考例句：

• Put it under the grill for a minute to brown the top.放在烤架下烤一分钟把上面烤成金黄色。
• I'll grill you some mutton.我来给你烤一些羊肉吃。

10 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

11 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。