The mall's biggest attraction isn't shopping anymore
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Fine dining in the mall. Photo: Claire Trageser/Axios
Take a stroll around the UTC or Fashion Valley mall and you'll soon see that the days of eateries like Sbarro and Orange Julius are a thing of the past.
Why it matters: Instead, fine dining restaurants are increasingly unfurling their tablecloths in local malls in what industry experts call a symbiotic relationship — restaurants get more foot traffic and malls get extra reasons for people to visit.
- "Anchor stores like Nordstroms used to be the draw, now it's food," Garrick Brown, vice president of real estate intelligence at real estate firm Galleli, told Axios.
Back in 2000, restaurants and entertainment concepts occupied 10% of mall space and were mostly food court staples or maybe a TGI Friday's on the tonier side.
- Today, food and entertainment cover 45% of mall space and are far more likely to be upscale and independent, he said.
The big picture: Malls need these restaurants because shopping habits have massively changed, Brown said.
- "Gen X shopping patterns were, go to the mall, buy clothes and maybe check out some funky gift shops, but it's now much more about people going there for the experience, for the food or entertainment," he said.
The intrigue: Malls are also using fitness studios, spas, axe throwing and whatever else to attract foot traffic, business and foot traffic-tracking software company Placer.ai's R.J. Hottovy told Axios.
- "The restaurants themselves are a destination, but people do tend to hang around the mall afterwards, so mall owner operators love those kinds of places," he said.
The other side: While malls want restaurants, restaurants also often benefit from being in malls.
- For example, nationwide Cheesecake Factories made $10 million on average last year in sales, but at Fashion Valley the chain pulled in $13.4 million, according to retail sales tracking firm CenterCheck.
What they're saying: When the UTC mall offered PJ Lamont, owner of the New Zealand Eats Restaurant Group, a lease deal to open a Queenstown restaurant, Lamont decided to go for it.
- And it's been working out, he told Axios.
- "It makes money, people enjoy it, it puts a smile on someone's face when they can get a cocktail and go walk around shopping," he said.
Still, Lamont said he might not do it again.
- "Malls have never been my thing," he said.
Yes, but: Is it really worth it to pay high end restaurant prices and sit in a mall?
My thought bubble: On a recent date night, my husband and I decided to check out Pazza Market & Cucina, a somewhat new addition to UTC.
- First we got drinks at Raised by Wolves, the speakeasy with the "hidden" revolving door in its wall.
- The drinks were delicious and the atmosphere was secluded and quiet.
But when we moved on to Pazza, we found ourselves paying $30 a plate for pasta and salad while dining in the crowded mall courtyard, surrounded by screaming toddlers and packs of teenagers.
- The tablecloths may have gotten fancier, but you're still eating in a mall.
- At least the screaming toddlers aren't charging corkage.