South Africans Are Eating Out Less Often. Here’s How to Make Each Outing Count

Takeaways are up. Sit-down restaurants and coffee shops are down. That is the clear message from Stats SA’s food and beverages data for 2026.

In the second quarter of 2026, income at restaurants and coffee shops fell 1.9% compared with a year earlier, the biggest drag on the whole food and beverages industry (Bizcommunity, 28 August 2026).

So what does that mean for the rest of us? Mostly this: people are choosing more carefully when they go out.

What the numbers say

Stats SA measures the industry’s income in real terms, which strips out inflation. The 2026 picture so far:

Bizcommunity’s reading of the data points to sensitivity around affordability and how often people visit, as households weigh eating out against other ways of eating.

The surprising part

People have not stopped spending on food. Takeaways have held up better. What is under pressure is the sit-down visit, the kind that takes time and costs a little more.

That suggests a shift in mindset. When money is tight, a casual Tuesday lunch is the first thing cut. The outings that survive are the ones with a reason: a birthday, a catch-up that is overdue, a celebration.

How to make each outing count

If you are going out less, make the times you do go out worth it. A simple checklist:

• Go with a reason. Turn a coffee into a catch-up, or a lunch into a birthday treat.
• Pick somewhere that feels different from home. Atmosphere is part of what you pay for.
• Look for set-price specials. They make the bill predictable.
• Book ahead on weekends so you are not spending the outing waiting for a table.
• Share. Platters and high tea stands stretch further for groups.

Where Goddess Café fits

Goddess Café is built for the outings that are worth it. It calls itself South Africa’s pinkest café, and the idea is simple: slow down, dress up and make a moment of the ordinary.

For value, keep an eye on the What’s On specials. Recent examples include:

• Sliders & Shakes: a mini burger (beef, panko chicken or haloumi) with a milkshake for R160 per person.
• Milkshake Sip & Dip: for kids, R100 per person at all cafés.
• Sip & Dip Tasting: handcrafted lattes paired with sweet treats, R120 per person.

For bigger occasions, function menus Options 1 to 5 carry no venue hire fee, which keeps group celebrations predictable.

Frequently asked questions

Are South Africans eating out less in 2026? Stats SA data shows real income at restaurants and coffee shops fell 1.9% year on year in Q2 2026.

What is doing better? Takeaway and fast-food outlets have held up better than sit-down restaurants.

Will this continue? Stats SA does not forecast. Monthly figures have swung up and down in 2026, so the trend is not settled.

Make the next one worth it

See what’s on or book a table at your nearest café.

Sources

• Bizcommunity: SA’s F&B sector posts modest June growth as quarterly pressure builds (28 August 2026)
• Business Day: Food and drink income slips as budgets tighten (30 July 2026)
• Stats SA: Food and beverages (P6420)