MRM Research Roundup: Mid-February 2021 Edition

This edition of MRM Research Roundup features news of restaurant resiliency, dining trends in Canada, restaurant salaries across the U.S. and more.Restaurant ResiliencyThroughout one of the most challenging years for U.S. restaurants, the industry demonstrated its resiliency against a variety of headwinds throughout 2020 by rising from a -35 percent traffic decline in April to a -11 percent visit decrease in December compared to year ago, reports The NPD Group. Although mandated dine-in restrictions have held back all restaurant segments, particularly full service, consumer demand for restaurant meals and the ability to serve the demand with a host of off-premises services, like digital ordering, delivery, drive-thru, and carry-out, are the silver linings that enable the industry to persevere. 

Restaurant digital orders, which were growing prior to the pandemic, increased by +19 percent in January of last year to +145 percent in December compared to year ago, according to NPD’s…