UK’s taste for takeaways slides as eating out returns and food prices rise

Pressure on restaurant margins as customer behaviour shifts and inflation eats into costs

UK households ordered 12% less takeaway food in January than a year before, while the sector also faced more competition from restaurants and cafes after the lifting of pandemic restrictions.

Despite the fall in the number of items ordered as customers tried to rein in spending amid the cost of living crisis, spending fell by just 2% as inflation pushed up the cost of each dish, according to the Hospitality at Home spending tracker by analysts at CGA and NielsenQ.