The Shift Towards In-House Dining in 2025
Over the past decade, food delivery apps have become increasingly popular and transformed the restaurant industry. Quick and convenient, these apps were lifesavers during the peak of the pandemic and became the new normal for millions of people. But in 2025, something new is rewriting the script: restaurants are turning their focus back to in-house dining.
So what’s behind the change? A combination of shifts in financial realities and behavior, and the new desire for immersive experiences. With more access to technology and tools to better discover the right place, eating out is the new in.
Understanding Restaurant Profit Margins
Takeout isn’t exactly cheap—for customers or restaurants. Most people are unaware of just how much those third-party platforms take. With delivery fees, commissions (sometimes 30% or more), and added packaging costs, the profit margins are reduced more than most realize.
Sure, the convenience is great. But after a bit, even that starts to wear off. Hot food is now warm. Fries get soggy. You forget the sauce, and can’t ask a waiter for more. It’s just not quite the same… and it adds up.
More than just a meal
It turns out that people don’t just want food—they want atmosphere, maybe even a little magic.
Restaurants have started to lean into that: rooftop patios with string lights, cocktail bars with secret doors or passcodes, farm-to-table cafes, and live music at the neighborhood gem. It’s less about hunger and more about making the most out of your night. A story to tell. A memory.
Sure, delivery is quick. But it’s rarely memorable.
Where the future of in-house dining is headed
Of course, delivery isn’t going away anytime soon. It’s here to stay in some form, and can sometimes be the best option on a hectic night. But in 2025, more restaurants are doubling down on what made them special in the first place: connection, experience, and what you just cannot get from eating out of a plastic box on the couch.
The tools to find the right spot are better now, too. Finding places with deals, checking real reviews, planning an actual outing—it’s easier than it used to be. Which, maybe, is why we needed to say yes to a night out.
Maybe that’s the shift we didn’t know we needed.