This year was the first Christmas since 2019 that hospitality businesses have been free to operate without Covid restrictions. New research has detailed a drop in sales for pubs in the UK, however, with the average venue seeing a drop by £855 over key days of Christmas trade in 2022.
Data collated by Oxford Partnership's Christmas 2022 Flash Report stated there had been a rise from the previous year for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. However, sales were down from pre-pandemic levels by a tenth. The cost of living crisis, rail strikes and illness have been said to have played a key part in this drop.
Michelin-star restaurant Wilsons reported a "string of cancellations" on the Saturday before the Christmas weekend losing half of its covers for one evening on a vital day for the restaurant trade. Fortunately, through the power of Twitter, they were able to fill the bookings in 24 hours meaning they didn't lose out that day.
Read more: Top 50 Gastropubs 2022 shows all the best venues within driving distance from Bristol
This week, the Office for National Statistics reported that three million people had Covid in the UK over the Christmas period, not counting the other cases of flu that appeared to be rife at the time. A busy street in Liverpool that is typically heaving on Christmas Eve was eerily quiet, reported Liverpool Echo.
Ben Cheshire, landlord of The Coronation in Southville, said the pub saw far fewer customers over the Christmas period than it was typically used to. He believes this is because people are trying to spend less.
"It's been really quiet over Christmas and the same for New Year's Eve," he told BristolLive. "The whole build-up to Christmas and New Year has been dead. We've definitely felt it.
"I think the cost of living crisis has scared people into spending. People just aren't going out as much and are saving their money on other things especially as bills have gone up massively."
But the pub faces an even bigger challenge this year with this loss of its outdoor seating. The Coronation is one of the dozens of venues that have been forced to remove its outdoor tables after the Government ended legislation that allowed pubs and restaurants to use parking bays and pavements.
Ben has spent the entire week dismantling the decking and has been forced to give away the wood used to make it. The tables and chairs have been moved into storage.
"It's really heart-breaking. We've got to cut back on staff equating to 62 hours," he added.
The Southville pub has lost the use of two parking bays and some of the double yellow line space outside of the pub. This totals to around eight tables, which is practically cutting their seating space in half. Ben had previously told BristolLive that the outdoor space was popular throughout the year, even in winter months, making it will be a huge loss for the pub.
Ben hopes to submit planning permission to reinstate the outside area by either applying for a Traffic Regulation Order or petitioning for a no-through road along Dean Lane where there is already a partial road closure. These avenues would take months to pass through and incur a big fee if accepted.
There has been a slight silver lining at the start of this month for The Coronation. Traditionally, January and February are quiet periods for hospitality but Ben is, fortunately, seeing a good start to the New Year already. "I think it's a myth, August is worse than January and February. For us, February is a pretty good month."
Find The Coronation at 18 Dean Lane, Bristol BS3 1DD
Read next:
The unassuming Bristol venue where Amy Winehouse, Muse and Dua Lipa have all played
Bristol brewery 'incredibly proud' after being crowned best in the UK
The Bristol pub striving to be one of the only employee-owned breweries in the UK
Fury as Bristol council begins process to turn outdoor dining space back to parking bays
