Resy Data Showed Significant Growth in April and Increased Demand for In-Person Dining

Graph reflects variance in completed covers [1] week-by-week between the beginning of February, 2020 and the end of April, 2021 at Resy restaurants [2]. As of the beginning of May 2021 completed covers at Resy restaurants in the US reached 87% of 2019 levels, the highest percentage reached since before the pandemic began.

Resy, the hospitality technology that powers restaurants around the world and consumer-facing reservation platform owned by American Express, shares data showing a significant return to in-person dining and strong restaurant recovery year to date, with peak activity logged on the Resy platform in April 2021. Data also showed record growth from March 2020 to March 2021, despite in-restaurant dining being limited: Resy users grew by 43% and the Resy restaurant network grew by 53%. Of the new restaurants that joined Resy in 2020 and 2021, roughly 1 in 3 were “no tech restaurants” – restaurants that did not previously use a digital reservation system – an increase from previous years that signals the pandemic has led operators to further embraced digital reservations.

“It has been a long road to recovery for our restaurants partners, but April data clearly shows the restaurant industry is back on track,” says Alex Lee, VP & GM of Resy, part of the American Express Global Dining Network. “Throughout it all, Resy and American Express have maintained their conviction that in-person dining would come back strong and be one of the first entertainment categories to rebound – this is why we invested in getting our restaurant partners to the other side with 100% fee relief for 15 months. Our focus now is activating and leveraging our strong guest network to drive business back to them, while continuing to deliver best-in-class technology that helps them thrive.”

Top metrics and insights that illustrate the restaurant industry’s recovery, based on Resy proprietary booking data, include:

• Restaurants Begin to Get Back On Track: Across the U.S., between January 1, 2021 and May 1, 2021, Resy’s active venues grew by 42% and covers grew month over month: 22% increase from January 2021 to February 2021, 48% from February to March, and 20% from March to April.
  
   
• April Hits A High Note: April 2021 logged the most completed covers of any month on the Resy platform. Additionally, the most recent four consecutive Saturdays (4/10, 4/17, 4/24, 5/1) recorded single-day Resy reservation records.
  
  
• Diners Show Enthusiasm: In April 2021 a record number of new Resy users joined the platform. The Resy app also had the highest level of engagement [3] since the pandemic began with the number of notifies set from January to April nearly tripling.
  
  

• New Yorkers Are Quick To Reserve with Lifted Restrictions: When New York State announced indoor dining capacity would reopen at 25%, bookings grew by 50% in the following weekday segment; when it was announced capacity would expand to 50%, bookings grew by 17% in the following weekday segment; and when it was announced capacity would expand to 75%, bookings grew by 9% in the following weekday.
  

• Markets Accelerate Out Of Restrictions: Cities where dining was more restricted (Los Angeles, San Francisco) and cities with harsher winters (NYC, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia) lag compared to cities that had looser restrictions and/or warmer winters (Atlanta, Charleston, Dallas, Miami), though cities showed positive growth in April, in addition to the beginning of May. Some cities are now exceeding pre-pandemic levels:
  

  Chart reflects 2021 completed cover volume by market v. 2019 total completed covers.

With this increase in consumer sentiment around in-person dining, Resy has released a new brand campaign – It’s Time To Make A Resy – which reminds diners that Resy is their source for restaurant intel, discovery and booking. In addition to serving diners city-by-city Hit Lists, Guides and original editorial about the most exciting restaurants that are open and ready to welcome guests back, the multi-channel campaign taps into the emotional aspect of dining out. In a new video spot, Resy highlights the moments we’ve missed and unique magic of restaurants, telling diners, It’s time to share the food we love, at the restaurants we love, with the people we love. It’s time to make a Resy.

“The campaign brings to life the Resy ethos, that restaurants are about more than just the food, it’s the atmosphere, the energy, the people you’re with – that is what we’ve all been missing, and that has always been uniquely part of the Resy brand,” says Victoria Vaynberg, Resy Chief Marketing Officer. “As this demand for dining continues, you’ll see Resy’s genuine passion for dining come to life across channels, married with the functional ability to book at the most exciting restaurants around the country.”

Read more about how Resy is driving guests back to restaurants with its It’s Time To Make A Resy campaign.

[1] A completed cover refers to each diner seated; one cover = one diner.

[2] For year-over-year comparisons, the same days of the week in 2021 are compared to the same day of the week in 2019. For example, Tuesday of week 11 in 2021 is compared to Tuesday of week 11 in 2019. To standardize data and compare “same set of restaurants”, only restaurants that are currently active on the Resy platform and were active on January 1, 2019 are included.

[3] Engagement is defined as any action taken within the Resy app, including reservation made, Notify set, restaurant added to My Hit List.