Help your favourite restaurants through fall

Eating out helps the local economy

With the colder weather approaching, supporting local becomes even more important. Restaurants have been known to financially have a difficult winter period, many barely getting by and looking forward to the summer to recoup their costs. After multiple lockdowns across Canada during the spring and summer, this winter will be critical. You may see many of your favourite restaurants shutting down—we are not in the clear yet.

Here are some ways to help your favourite restaurants during the fall.

Dani @cravinghalifax has advice to help your favourite restaurants during the fall. Photo: Jessie Snair Photography

Supporting local with more than a meal

🍂 Follow restaurants on social media, engage with their content, share a photo of a meal you’ve had and tag them. Surprisingly, engaging with their content on socials is an incredible help.

🍂 Bundle up and visit your fav patio. Bring a blanket, and enjoy the outdoors a little longer this fall on an open patio near you. Many patios are planning to extend their patios as long as possible.

🍂 Many local restaurants have SWAG! Yes, cute sweaters, masks, branded glassware. One of my favourite things is sipping a local wine from their glass at home. It always brings back memories of my experiences!

🍂 Purchase gift cards for Christmas—gift cards do not go bad and that money can truly help your favourite restaurant get through the difficult winter months. Even if you plan on going for an anniversary coming up, purchasing a local gift card can truly add a light at the end of the tunnel for local restos.

🍂 Using a local restaurant as family take-out or catering for a work event can add conversation, warmth and passion. As a business supporting another business, this always goes over well! As a family, you get to talk about the flavours, you can relax instead of spending time cooking and the clean up is usually minimal (paper plates, anyone?!)

When you support local, you are supporting your local economy. You help their families put food on their tables. In some cases you’re helping local farmers. It goes beyond just purchasing a meal!

Follow restaurants on social media, engage with their content, share a photo of a meal you’ve had and tag them. Photo: Jessie Snair Photography

Dani Squires (@CravingHalifax) is an award-winning blogger, based out of Halifax, Nova Scotia, who focuses on food, experiences and reviews. She stresses the importance of supporting local through her blog and through her extensive volunteer work.