NASHVILLE, Tenn. -
Is summer good or bad for the restaurant business?
The answer to that question varies depending on who you ask.
A survey by the National Restaurant News and MillerPulse, showed a "trend upward" for quick-service chains and casual-dining brands during summer months.
Nashville's News 2 contacted local restaurant Burger Up located on 12th Avenue South and found the summer months are traditionally a bad time for restaurant owners.
Employee Miranda Whitcomb Pontes said fall and spring are restaurant's "sweet spots."
"It gets so hot here in Nashville, we lose our patio seating for the majority of the summertime," she explained.
Pontes said the 25% fewer seats make it appear that the restaurant is busy because all of the patrons are eating inside.
She also added weekend traffic is always slower during the summer, but she has noticed an increase in the number of patrons on other nights.
"We're seeing a lot of kids, a lot of families on our Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights," she said. "A definite increase in sales on what typically would be our slower nights of our restaurant."
Leslie and Jon-Paul Frappier said during the summer they typically eat out one to two times each week.
The couple said they typically eat out because they're able to be together more, and the hot weather makes eating out more pleasant.
"Mostly its because the house is really hot," said Jon-Paul. "You know we've got to heat up the kitchen, in our case the house isn't that big, we probably need a bigger heat pump because if we cook the house is hot for hours."
A vast majority of restaurant owners surveyed said they expect business to continually improve over the next six months.
