FSR March 2023

CH E F S & I NG R E D I EN T S / L I QU I D I N T E L L I G ENC E

many lunch-centric establishments either curtail ing their hours or shuttering their doors altogether. But happy hour isn’t lunch. While the latter can be a social gathering, happy hour is almost exclusively one. Some studies suggest consumers are seeking out these occasions even more than they did before COVID. “The happy hours themselves have not changed because of the pandemic. They are still a way for our restaurants to attract guests and start the energy earlier in the day. They are just as busy as they were before,” says Jennifer Krapp, director of restaurant operations for Charleston, South Car olina–based Indigo Road Hospitality. “I believe that with so many people working remotely now, people are craving that social interaction that they are not getting throughout the day.” Happy hour is a common offering across Indigo Road’s 30-odd restaurants, though the approach varies by concept. For example, seven-unit O-Ku Sushi positions its happy hour around deep dis counts, such as half-off rolls. “Guests’ behaviors indicate everyone loves a good deal, whether it is food or drink,” Krapp adds. On the other hand, sister restaurant Maya uses the stretch between 5 and 6:30 P . M . to showcase playful dishes and drinks not found on the regu lar menu. This includes elote popcorn, Frito Pie (made with corn chips), and Ranch Water—made with Lunazul Tequila, lime, and sparkling water. At f ine casual Hopdoddy, the pre-COVID happy hour served multiple purposes from a busi ness standpoint. Vice president of revenue Matt Schweitzer breaks down the menu as follows: 50 percent showcased (and in some cases, tested ) unique items that could be quickly executed; 25 percent comprised what Schweitzer describes as “brand-defining” items; and 25 percent were dis counted offerings. In the three years leading up to 2020, happy hour was the single largest growing daypart at Hopdoddy. Schweitzer credits its burgeoning pop ularity to several high-volume stores in densely populated areas—right in the path of professional foot traff ic. Brand positioning and smooth exe cution then ensured its staying power. “At the time, we were really trying to use happy hour not as a discount, because we’re not a dis count brand, but as an outlet where we could get people [to try] things that were a little bit differ ent … and really highlighted what we do and what we do really well,” Schweitzer says. The very existence of happy hour at Hop

“Happy hour is one of those things that we wanted to grab from other sectors of the restaurant scene, and we thought that it could be a differentiator for us, given our full bar, given our service model, given our offerings.

 MATT SCHWEITZER

 HOPDODDY

doddy already highlights a difference between the concept and its limited-service peers. While not unheard of, happy hours conventionally fall under the purview of full-service operations and bars. Hopdoddy, however, bucks the norm. “Our CEO [ Jeff Chandler], who’s done an

BUCKS THE NORM WITH HAPPY HOUR IN A FAST-CASUAL SETTING.

HOPDODDY (3)

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INDUSTRY-WIDE ISSUE

MARCH 2023