Restaurants focus on alcohol to boost business

Fort Lauderdale residents Mark Albright and Hilda Karkella go to The Cheesecake Factory on Las Olas Boulevard about once a week. Recently, the couple has been taking advantage of the restaurant's new happy hour special, which includes discounted drinks and appetizers.

"We've been here twice this week," Albright said on Friday.

"We really look forward to this," Karkella said, noting the happy hour offers the duo a great value and a chance to relax on the town. "We get the mojitos for $5. Usually, we wouldn't order it, but for $5 you can't beat the price."

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As the recession takes a bite out of food sales, restaurants are paying more attention to customers such as Martin by focusing more of their efforts on beer, wine and spirits.

Several chains have started happy hours, while others are remodeling to create new bars or call more attention to existing ones.

The Cheesecake Factory last month started the first happy-hour promotion in its 31-year history, selling appetizers and many drinks for $5 apiece in its restaurants. The California-based chain hopes to fill its restaurants when it's not normally busy — weekdays from 4 to 6 p.m. — and to draw "people who might not otherwise be able to afford to come to us" during tough economic times, Chief Marketing Officer Mark Mears said.

Late last year, Ruby Tuesday started a $5 premium-cocktail program. In January, P.F. Chang's China Bistro launched a happy-hour menu with drinks and appetizers for $3 to $6.

Generally viewed as more profitable than food, alcohol has always been an important sales lubricant for restaurants. In a recession, beer, wine and liquor can lure new customers or boost the checks for the ones already there.

"There's only so many areas of the business where you can increase sales beyond just getting additional customers," said Rick Van Warner, president of the Parquet Group, an Orlando-based restaurant and retail-consulting company. "If you can increase the check average of somebody coming in by selling them an appetizer, another drink, a dessert, that's what you're looking for."

Sales at some sports-themed restaurants, which tend to sell a lot of alcohol, have held up well. Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar, where alcohol makes up 26 percent of sales, has seen rising numbers.