The number of casual dining restaurants has increased by +1.3% in the last 12 months—equivalent to just over 2,000 net new openings. Casual dining outlets now comprise 73% of the eating channel in the US, having gained share from fine dining and fast and polished casual segments in 2024.
Spirits have been among the beneficiaries of casual dining’s expansion, and OPM indicates this channel now accounts for 53.2% of total out-of-home spirits volumes in the US—a gain of +0.7 percentage points in the last 12 months. Hotspots for growth have included Louisiana, where casual dining attracted 47.1% of spirits volumes—a jump of +4.4 percentage points. Florida and New York both saw casual dining outlets gain +1.4pp of sales.
Casual dining’s year-on-year performance in the beer and wine categories has been more muted, with a rise in outlets still to translate into share growth. The channel commands 49% and 71% of total beer and wine volumes respectively, representing year-on-year share loss of -1.1 and -0.6 percentage points.
Casual dining’s beer sales have been more stable in Florida, where distribution growth has helped to counteract a decline in volume. The channel nevertheless attracts more than 50% of total drinks volumes in Florida and other states including California, Texas and Colorado. Like in spirits and beer, the South Atlantic region delivered casual dining’s greatest volume share growth for wine, with gains of +1.6 and +1.3 percentage points in Georgia and Florida respectively.
CGA’s On Premise OPM solution and monthly report provides further analysis of casual dining’s share of sales across all US states. The OPM solution facilitates expert insights into all On Premise channels and drinks categories, helping suppliers track key volume and distribution trends.
Matthew Crompton, CGA by NIQ’s Vice-President: On Premise-Americas, said: “Casual dining has been outperforming the US On Premise for new openings for some time, creating great opportunities for suppliers to gain new listings and sales. While total On Premise volumes have experienced modest declines in recent months, the growth in share highlights the value of casual dining to the spirits category, and the need to drive brand mandates in the sector to help rectify share-loss in beer and wine. To achieve that, suppliers will need accurate, up-to-the-minute sales and outlet data, and our research is the ideal springboard for smart and responsive strategies.”
CGA’s OPM solution delivers in-depth analysis of the wine category across the US On Premise, with insights by channel, sub-category, state and much more. To discover more about the service and opportunities for bespoke analysis, click here and contact the CGA by NIQ team or visit https://cgastrategy.com/unlock-the-potential-of-opm.
