Source: Eater
High-end restaurants are shuttering or converting to more casual, lower-ticket concepts in Manhattan. The economics of fine dining—long dependent on expense-account diners and tourists—have shifted. Owners are choosing accessible dining over Michelin-star positioning because casual restaurants offer better unit economics, faster table turns, and less exposure to the volatile luxury market. Even affluent diners are trading formal tasting menus for counter service and $20 entrees.