British Diners Choose Cheaper Fast Food Over Restaurants And Pubs

Brits are opting to eat from fast food outlets instead of dining at traditional pubs and full-service restaurants, demonstrating a shift in consumer spend and a long-term trend set to continue through 2026 and into 2027, according to new research.

UK restaurant and pub visits declined by 6.8% last year, as households cut discretionary spend under sustained cost‑of‑living pressure, shows data from Meaningful Vision, a UK-based market intelligence firm for the foodservice industry.

Fast food and other fast-casual formats, meanwhile, are benefitting with footfall traffic up 0.9%, as consumers trade down on both price and occasion; opting instead for more quick, informal meals, and fewer sit‑down experiences. 

During 2025, fast-food outlet numbers expanded by 2.2% as operators opened nearly 1,300 new locations, while the total number of restaurants and pubs declined by around 2.3%, enabling fast food to absorb demand lost elsewhere.

These traffic shifts point to broader inflation and wage pressures, with consumers remaining cautious and value‑driven even as inflation eases.

“Rising inflation has fundamentally changed how people eat out,” said Maria Vanifatova, CEO and Founder of Meaningful Vision. 

“Restaurants and pubs now have less choices when it comes to managing price increases and protecting margins, especially with further planned increases to the minimum wage likely to disproportionately affect hospitality. This drives more consumers to trade down, switching to fast-food and fast-casual options which feel like better value.” 

At the same time, Vanifatova said the growth of brands such as Popeyes and Wingstop highlights how new concepts are still finding room to scale in the UK market, especially in the fast-food segment. 

“Premium fast-food brands, in particular, have digital in their DNA and are using that to engage younger audiences,” she noted. “For these reasons, we see the rise of premium fast-food at the expense of casual dining as a long-term trend that will continue through 2026 and into 2027.”

Chicken, Coffee, Bakery Lead The Way

Overall, foodservice traffic is down, but quick‑service formats, including fast food, bakery, coffee, and sandwich shops, are holding up better than casual dining and pubs. 

Within fast food, chicken, burgers, and bakery/sandwich players are proving relatively resilient, supported by value offers and strong appeal to younger and working‑age consumers. 

According to Meaningful Vision’s analysis, quick-service chicken restaurants were the strongest performers in 2025 with footfall up nearly 6% year-on-year. 

Bakery and sandwich formats followed with growth of around 3%, while coffee shops recorded a 2% rise.

Fast Food Expansion Driving Footfall

A closer look at the data reveals that the growth in fast food traffic came from a greater choice of locations, rather than from consumers visiting more often, resulting in a -1 % decline in like-for-like visits when the impact of new openings are removed from the calculation. 

“Fast-food growth in 2025 was almost entirely expansion-led,” explained Vanifatova. “Looking ahead, expansion alone is unlikely to deliver sustainable growth. As more strong players enter the market, average traffic per store is expected to continue to decline. […] For the wider market, this means increased pressure on independent operators and a continued shift towards greater chain dominance.”

Northern Ireland was recorded as having the strongest fast-food outlet growth geographically in 2025, followed by the South of England.

Chicken brand store numbers rose by nearly 6.5% year on year in 2025, more than three times the average pace of other fast-food segments, Meaningful Vision said. 

Bakery and sandwich formats followed, with outlet growth of around 2.8%, while burger chains expanded by roughly 2.6%.