Hospitality Sector Index

The Moore Kingston Smith monthly hospitality sector report provides you with a valuable and timely indication of the month-on-month and year-on-year changes occurring within the sector.

Restaurants, pubs and bars –April 2026

Pubs and bars to lead the sector, whilst casual dining struggles to stay afloat – London feels the impact of tube strikes.

Hospitality at a glance

• April brought a slight month-on-month improvement for hospitality, but no real momentum to be enjoyed.

• Pubs & Bars were the clearest bright spot, being the only sector to see significant year-on-year revenue growth.

• As households prioritise value and reduce discretionary frequency, casual dining continues to struggle, with Easter holiday period offering little relief.

• London lagged as travel disruption reduced city‑centre demand.

• Hotel performance varied geographically, with regional strength contrasting starkly with softness in London.

  
  

Sub-sector performance

Fine dining

Occasions led demand, corporate entertaining and the Easter period helped concentrate spending into key dates, giving operators enough confidence to increase staffing where demand justified it, while still maintaining careful cost discipline.

The overall year-on-year analysis shows that revenue was down 0.92% and labour hours down by 3.94% (on a like-for-like basis).  Whilst top‑end, occasion‑led demand continues to provide some insulation, the fine dining sector is no longer immune to wider economic pressures as premium consumers are becoming more selective, prompting operators to focus on leaner operating models.

Casual dining

Casual dining delivered a flat month-on-month performance in April. Revenue edged down 0.10%, while labour hours rose 0.13%.

While Easter provided a short‑term trading boost, it did little to lift underlying demand levels, reinforcing the structural challenges facing mid‑market operators during what is usually a dependable spring trading period.

Year-on-year performance remains weak: revenue down 9.45% and labour hours down 6.62% versus April 2025.

London was weaker still, with revenues down 10.9%, as April tube strikes depressed mid-week trade. April’s transport disruption compounded the sectors existing challenges by limiting commuter flows and reducing mid‑week dining.

Pubs & bars

After a strong March, pubs and bars slipped back in April, with revenue down 1.95% as Easter-driven demand faded and mid-week trade lost momentum.

In particular, London was notably weaker than the rest of the UK, with revenue down 4.76% month-on-month as holiday leave and travel disruption reduced commuter footfall and after-work socialising.

Despite softer month-on-month performance, pubs and bars still outperformed the rest of the sector year-on-year, with revenue up 5.37% versus April 2025 and labour hours down 1.14%. The category continued to benefit from strong value appeal, with drink-led occasions still seen as an affordable treat for consumers.

Hotels – March 2026*

 *The hotel data reflects a period one month earlier than the restaurant data due to an industry reporting lag.

The Hotels section reports revenue up 1.18% month-on-month and labour hours down 1.05%, as operators used flexible staffing to meet gradually strengthening demand more efficiently.

Year-on-year, revenue was up 0.35% while labour hours were down 2.60%, with margin protection clearly being prioritised.

The sharpest divide was geographic: hotels outside London recorded revenue growth of 15.27%, while London hotels saw revenue fall 6.26%.

Regional leisure demand and travel activity provided support, but London continued to be held back by weaker city-centre demand and a slower recovery in corporate, conference and long-lead group travel.