DALLAS — This story was originally published by our content partners at the Dallas Business Journal. Read it here. The video at the top of this article was initially published on April 7, 2023.
The Texas food service industry potentially saw a record $106.8 billion in sales in 2023 — and the Metroplex led the way.
The Dallas-Fort Worth area generated $29.9 billion of those sales last year, according to the National Restaurant Association's review of preliminary figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Right behind was the Houston metro with $25.6 billion. Austin and San Antonio tied with $9.6 billion apiece.
Additionally, it looks like food service is now the largest private sector for employment in the state, with 1.46 million workers — about 11% of the state's total employment. It overtook health care for the top spot.
Food service includes bars and caterers. But it's largely made up of restaurants — more than 56,000 across the state, with around 90% of them being small businesses with fewer than 50 employees.
North Texas is fertile ground for both national chains and homegrown restauranteurs. Portillo’s entered the Metroplex in 2023 and has been on a tear. CosMc's, a new drink-focused chain from McDonald’s Corp., is expanding in DFW, too.
Meanwhile, a local Mexican restaurant will also take over the former Gas Monkey Bar and Grill space in Northwest Dallas. Sidecar Social expanded to Frisco. And upscale restaurants have opened in developments such as Fort Worth’s Deco 969 tower, Dallas’ Harwood No. 14 high-rise and Loews Arlington Hotel.
If 2023 was busy for restaurants, it was also challenging. According to a Texas Restaurant Association survey, 54% of respondents experienced a significant or slight decrease in profits, with only about 32% saying it remained "about the same."
Additionally, only 48% of respondents said they have enough employees to meet demand. The report indicates restaurants have increased pay to meet growing labor demands, with an estimated 58% reporting rising labor costs and 24% of respondents indicating a "significant increase" in employee compensation.
About 64% of restaurants also reported experiencing an increase in food costs.
Despite these increases, about 62% of restaurants maintained their menu prices or decreased them.
Yet restaurants statewide are apparently maintaining a somewhat optimistic outlook for the future, reporting an overall outlook score of 58 out of 100, with 100 being "extremely optimistic."