AFTER THE BOOM: CONSUMERS ARE cautiously starting to dine out more regularly, despite the recession, according to the owner of a Dublin food establishment.

Sarah Kennedy is proprietor of Kennedy’s Food Store in Fairview, a deli, cafe and bistro, which has been creating home-made food since opening in 2007. She says that since June, early-week diners began returning to the business.

“People were cautious in the first six months of the year and the key nights for the bistro were Thursday, Friday and Saturday, whereas now I am starting to see more of a spread. That would indicate to me people feel more secure about being able to enjoy themselves. I feel at this point people are starting to feel more secure in their own jobs and things are starting to look up on a global level.”

Her business, which also provides a catering service, has generated revenue this year in line with 2008, something she puts down to providing quality food at affordable prices and having a loyal customer base.

“People still want to come out and enjoy leisure time – they just want to do it at a reasonable price. I wanted a home-cooked bistro menu that is affordable even when times are difficult for people.”

It is a move that seems to have paid off. She has already expanded the business onto the second floor of the building as a direct result of customer demand.

“We did not have enough seats downstairs and during the busy periods we had to turn people away.”

Ms Kennedy says to cope with the changed economic conditions she has stopped overtime for her 13 staff and is careful to make sure working hours are more productive. She is also monitoring stock levels and wastage more closely. “The one area we have to be very careful is making sure we are watching variable costs all the time,” she says.

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