The State of Local Restaurants 2020
VIRGINIA
We analyzed transactions for every day of the 2019 calendar year at 36,000 local restaurants across the United States, including Virginia. This resulted in a comprehensive examination of when local restaurants do the most business, when they serve the most diners, and what 2020 may look like when it comes to eating local.
What we learned about local restaurant sales in Virginia
Virginia is the 20th-ranked state for average daily restaurant revenue in the country, generating right around the national average in daily revenue.
Do you own a restaurant in Virginia?
How much do restaurants in Virginia make on an average day?
On a typical day, the average restaurant in Virginia brought in $1,327 in revenue. The average restaurant also processed about 47 daily transactions at an average of $28.08 per ticket.
| Sales Revenue | Transactions | Ticket Size |
| $1,327 | 47 | $28.08 |
| National Rank: 20 | National Rank: 24 | National Rank: 23 |
What days of the week are busiest for Virginia restaurants?
Fridays and Saturdays are money makers at restaurants across the US, and that trend continues for Virginia.
Saturdays were especially huge, with 20% of all restaurant revenue in Virginia coming in on that day alone. On the other hand, Mondays were the slowest day of the week for Virginia restaurants, with only 9% of revenue generated that day.
Virginia restaurants processed an average of 58 daily transactions on Fridays, more than any other day of the week.
Virginians spend more per transaction on weekends, with Saturdays boasting the largest average ticket of the week at $32.55 per ticket. Average ticket price is lowest on Mondays, when diners spent an average of $8.02 less than on Saturdays.
What time of year do Virginia restaurants make the most money?
Virginians enjoy dining out regardless of the season, but what does the average year look like from week to week at restaurants in Virginia? Let's take a look.
Local restaurants in the Old Dominion State appear to do the most business during late spring and throughout the summer. August was the biggest month of the year overall, though May and June were nearly equally busy.
And while August may have been the biggest month of the year overall, Mother's Day was responsible for the single-biggest week of the year for Virginia restaurants: May 6th through the 12th.
Top 5 days for Virginia restaurants
While summer may have held some of the biggest weeks and months, the top five days of the year were all in May and March. Mother's Day was responsible for the two biggest days of the year, while Saturdays in May and March round out the rest of the top five.
| #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 |
5/12/19 Mother's Day |
5/11/19 Mother's Day Weekend |
5/4/19 |
3/30/19 |
3/23/19 |
| Sunday | Saturday | Saturday | Saturday | Saturday |
Virginia restaurants on prominent days
Restaurants rely on holidays and events to drive big sales days for their business. Here's how prominent days rank compared to the average day.
| Day rank based on total sales | How much did restaurants that were open make? | ||||||||
| Day | Day Rank | Total rev vs avg | % of restaurants open | Avg rev | Rev vs avg | Avg txns | Txns vs avg | Avg ticket | Ticket vs avg |
| New Year's Day | 313 | -30% | 60% | $1,313 | -1% | 40 | -15% | $32.55 | 16% |
| Super Bowl Sunday | 236 | -16% | 74% | $1,298 | -2% | 44 | -8% | $29.70 | 6% |
| Valentine's Day | 85 | 29% | 89% | $1,660 | 25% | 52 | 10% | $32.03 | 14% |
| St. Patrick's Day | 139 | 5% | 77% | $1,564 | 18% | 51 | 8% | $30.63 | 9% |
| Friday before Easter | 57 | 42% | 94% | $1,715 | 29% | 58 | 23% | $29.59 | 5% |
| Saturday before Easter | 32 | 45% | 92% | $1,797 | 35% | 56 | 18% | $32.36 | 15% |
| Easter Sunday | 179 | -5% | 64% | $1,698 | 28% | 45 | -5% | $37.95 | 35% |
| Cinco de Mayo | 94 | 24% | 81% | $1,745 | 32% | 55 | 16% | $31.84 | 13% |
| Friday before Mother's Day | 20 | 49% | 98% | $1,741 | 31% | 59 | 25% | $29.37 | 5% |
| Saturday before Mother's Day | 2 | 72% | 95% | $2,073 | 56% | 58 | 23% | $35.79 | 27% |
| Mother's Day | 1 | 73% | 81% | $2,447 | 84% | 58 | 22% | $42.28 | 51% |
| Friday before Memorial Day | 39 | 44% | 98% | $1,680 | 27% | 58 | 22% | $29.18 | 4% |
| Saturday before Memorial Day | 64 | 38% | 95% | $1,665 | 26% | 50 | 7% | $33.05 | 18% |
| Memorial Day | 303 | -29% | 69% | $1,187 | -11% | 40 | -15% | $29.37 | 5% |
| Friday before Father's Day | 6 | 53% | 100% | $1,747 | 32% | 60 | 26% | $29.23 | 4% |
| Saturday before Father's Day | 7 | 53% | 97% | $1,797 | 35% | 54 | 15% | $33.13 | 18% |
| Father's Day | 43 | 44% | 83% | $1,970 | 49% | 53 | 13% | $36.98 | 32% |
| 4th of July | 318 | -31% | 59% | $1,327 | 0% | 43 | -9% | $30.77 | 10% |
| Friday before Labor Day | 58 | 41% | 96% | $1,672 | 26% | 59 | 25% | $28.38 | 1% |
| Saturday before Labor Day | 45 | 43% | 93% | $1,766 | 33% | 55 | 17% | $31.97 | 14% |
| Labor Day | 277 | -25% | 67% | $1,274 | -4% | 44 | -7% | $28.98 | 3% |
| Halloween | 240 | -17% | 85% | $1,119 | -16% | 45 | -5% | $24.88 | -11% |
| Thanksgiving Eve | 129 | 8% | 81% | $1,522 | 15% | 50 | 5% | $30.59 | 9% |
| Thanksgiving | 364 | -59% | 27% | $1,693 | 28% | 33 | -30% | $50.89 | 81% |
| Christmas Eve | 334 | -36% | 56% | $1,300 | -2% | 35 | -26% | $37.30 | 33% |
| Christmas Day | 365 | -67% | 23% | $1,630 | 23% | 36 | -24% | $45.43 | 62% |
| New Year's Eve | 167 | -2% | 68% | $1,628 | 23% | 46 | -2% | $35.23 | 26% |
Methodology
Womply analyzed daily revenue for over 36,000 restaurants in all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, for all 365 days of the 2019 calendar year. Restaurants were only included in the analysis if they qualified as small businesses, Womply had a full year of transaction history, and the business recorded multiple transactions per day, on average.