Super Bowl 2023: DMV restaurants gear up for expected boost in business

DMV businesses gear up for Super Bowl Sunday rush

Super LVII between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs kicks off Sunday on FOX 5, which means many restaurants and bars across the DMV are preparing for large crowds and a big boost in food orders. FOX 5's Ayesha Khan has the story.

FOX 5 visited several restaurants in the area to find out how they are prepping for the big game.

Several eateries we spoke with said like the coaches of the two Super Bowl teams, there’s important strategy at play for those selling food and alcoholic beverages for Sunday’s main meal.

"I wanna say we have doubled the amount of food we are going to put out," Ed Reavis the co-founder of Fryers Roadside Silver Spring tells FOX 5.

One of the popular items restaurants are preparing to sell in bulk, is chicken wings.

DMV restaurant owners say after prices on wings spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic, they are now returning to their normal levels.

That's helping restaurants reap the rewards, while passing the value on to customers.

Super Bowl LVII preparations underway at DMV restaurants

Everyone, including many local restaurants, are gearing up for Super Bowl LVII on Sunday, which you can catch on FOX 5. To learn more about how restaurants in the DMV are preparing for the expected boost in orders, FOX 5's Ayesha Khan visited Money Muscle BBQ in Silver Spring.

"Chicken wing prices are better, they certainly were terrible for a while so when a food item costs the restaurant more than fifty percent it’s a recipe for closure," said Jen Meltzer the owner of Fryers Roadside Silver Spring.

"It’s a supply and demand thing, same thing around the Super Bowl, the price of wings generally goes up, but I think it’s in more of an approachable price point now for business," added Scott Drewno from Chiko Restaurants.

Despite the lower prices on wings, the businesses tell FOX 5 that because of the pressures created by inflation, many customers are looking for deals. So to help, many local eateries will be doing special menus.

"We kind of keep the prices as they are because we want our guests to have the best value that we can give them, so we don’t do price raises for a short term, we do special menus," Drewno tells FOX 5.

To gear up for the Super Bowl rush, many DMV restaurants and bars are tightening their protocols and procedures, in order to ensure precision and speedy service.

"We can kind of start to gauge a little bit through our pre-sales and we definitely have bumped up the staff," said Drewno about how Chiko Restaurants are preparing.

DMV restaurants prepare for Super Bowl LVII orders

Super Bowl LVII kicks off tomorrow, and ahead of the game, many restaurants and carry outs are gearing up for a big boost in demand. FOX 5's Ayesha Khan visited Money Muscle BBQ in Silver Spring to find out more.

Meltzer added that at Fryers Roadside Silver Spring, "it’s all hands on deck, especially with our smoking team the shortest item that we smoke takes about two to three hours and longest item is the brisket at about 12 hours."

The eateries FOX 5 spoke with add that they hope people across the DMV will support small businesses, however they choose to enjoy the big game.

Remember you can watch Super Bowl LVII on FOX 5 starting at 6:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.