Restaurants Are Right-Sizing

"Unlike the barn-size, $10 million-plus projects like the plush steak houses that were the norm as recently as a year ago, restaurants now on the books tend to have fewer seats, lower prices, and less lofty ambitions. More often than in headier times, they eschew the BYOB model, opting for liquor licenses to pump profits. And they are relying on private financing rather than harder-to-come-by bank loans."

Decreasing rents and an available workforce are a few reasons restauranteurs cite for braving the economic climate.