The 35-day shutdown of the Federal Government affected not only its employees, but also the local Washington, D.C. restaurants.
The recent shutdown was the longest in history, costing the US economy $11 billion. The Congressional Budget Office estimated of that $11, $3 billion is permanently lost. That amount of money covers local revenue, including dining out and the museums being shut down due to furlough.
Gravy Analytics ran a report of which local restaurants were affected the most by the shutdown. Chic-fil-A, Starbucks, and Arby's are the top fast-food restaurants that lost revenue from Dec. 22 to Jan. 25. While some restaurant traffic decreased, others increased. "Guest counts rose during the shutdown by 9% at KFC, 4% at Dairy Queen and 1% at Taco Bell and Dunkin’, the data show."
To read the study further, click here.
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