Restaurant activity up and down

Activity grew in July, still slower than 2010: Head of Restaurants Owners’ Syndicate

July 18, 2011- The activity of restaurants and cafés grew this July from the past few months, but was still less than last year, according to Paul Ariss, President of the Syndicate of Restaurants’ Owners, Cafés, Night-clubs and Pastry Shops’ Owners.

“Before the government formation, the activity recoiled between 30 and 35 percent compared to 2010, however the restaurants’ activity grew throughout the past two weeks,” he said. Ariss attributed the poor tourism activity to the delay of the government formation as well as the release of the indictment in the case of Former Premier Rafic Hariri’s assassination.

Ariss said Beirut captured the majority of the activity of restaurants whereas the activity in Mount Lebanon maintained a painstaking slowdown. According to Ariss, several cafés and restaurants across Beirut have closed down within the past six months. However, he said, the only Beirut area which maintained its average activity was Hamra, which is a hub for universities and has a majority population of youths.