Mother's Day reservations surge beyond 2019 levels

• This January, dozens of Austin restaurants and bars closed for a day or more after staffers were struck with COVID — or out of an abundance of caution amid the Omicron surge.

By the numbers: Austin was among the top cities tracked by OpenTable experiencing a significant increase in Mother's Day reservations this year. Other cities that saw a sharp increase:

• Scottsdale: 168%
• Columbus, Ohio: 158%
• Orlando: 117%

Zoom out: The increase is part of a wider trend for Mother's Day dining, which shows OpenTable reservations are up 39% nationwide compared to 2019 and up 13% compared to 2021.

Of note: Austin restaurants continue to face staffing shortages, with the city's service industry workforce rebounding at a slower rate than others.

• Restaurant jobs per 1,000 total jobs were down 6.3% in 2021, the sixth largest decline among top-50 metros, according to a workforce report from BentoBox.

The bottom line: As dining returns, many restaurants are still dealing with staggering employee reductions as part of the so-called “Great Resignation.”