Some research is suggesting that lunch crowds may not be what they used to be. As more people work from home, it means less people eating out for lunch. And then those who shop online have no reason to great a bite to eat which they would normally do during a visit to the mall.
Slower lunch crowds are forcing some restaurants and diners to get creative to fill up their dining areas.
WWL food show host Tom Fitzmorris everyone is rushed and many skip lunch altogether.
"Lunch time people these days have made their lunch times ever more simple," Fitzmorris said. "They want to just run into a place, get a slice of pizza, get a burger, even something like sushi, that's already packaged, ready to go. All you have to do is open it and eat it."
Lunch has been slipping for a decade, according to market research firm The NPD Group.
"I keep feeling that at some point we are going to return to the situation that we can actually sit down during lunch with the people we do business with," said Fitzmorris.
The typical American consumer uses a restaurant for lunch 11 fewer times annually than a decade ago.