October 31, 2012 — Restaurant chains including Boston Market Corp., Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) and Applebee’s may see a boost in sales as consumers flock to eateries after Hurricane Sandy flooded the East Coast, leaving millions without power.
While restaurants may be “hit initially” because of store closings, sales will start picking up as consumers who lost power along the East Coast eat out more frequently, said Stephen Anderson, an analyst at Miller Tabak & Co. in New York.
“There is cabin fever — the same thing happened after Hurricane Irene last year,” he said. “October’s loss will be November’s gain” for restaurants, Anderson said.
Sandy, spanning 900 miles, caused flooding, high winds and fallen trees that cut power to about 8 million customers from South Carolina to Maine. Economic damage and losses from the storm may be as much as $20 billion, according to Eqecat Inc., a risk-management company in Oakland, California.
Texas Roadhouse Inc. (TXRH) had a surge of customers in Long Island yesterday, said Travis Doster, a spokesman for the Louisville, Kentucky-based company. Power may not be restored for as many as 10 days to more than 2 million New York customers, mostly on Long Island and in New York City.
“Usually Tuesdays, we’re not as busy, and we had the whole restaurant packed,” Stefanie Diaz, service manager at a Texas Roadhouse in East Meadow on Long Island, said in an interview. Customers wore pajamas and children brought pillows to the restaurant, where they charged laptops and mobile phones, she said.
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