Fewer restaurants are taking advantage of the city’s CaféTO program but those that do are reaping big benefits, according to a new study from the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas.
So far in 2024, CaféTO restaurants made $110 million, down from $179 million in 2022 as participation dropped by over 40 per cent.
This year, 754 restaurants used the program, down from 1,329 in 2022. However, average revenue increased to $145,000, up from $135,000.
Restaurants are also spending more to improve their outdoor ambience.
In 2024, restaurant owners spent an average of $26,000 on the patios that dot many of the city’s busiest streets, up from an average of $18,000 in 2022.
That translated into $130 million in economic benefits to the city’s economy in 2024, according to the study, down from $203 million in 2022.
“Each restaurant is spending more on patios and construction and upkeep and decor, which demonstrates that they believe in the program and want to keep investing in it,” said Michael Harker, executive director of Community Researchers, who presented the study at city hall this week.
Participating restaurants also reported a willingness to spend more on the permitting process compared to 2022, the study found, “which is a good sign for any program,” Harker said.
There were a number of reasons why fewer restaurants engaged in the program this year, according to the study.
Those include nearby construction, infrastructure limitations and fees.
For some restaurants, “construction has taken place next door, and it doesn't make sense to have it,” said John Kiru, head of the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas.
Others “were lost for reasons of infrastructure. We can't lock sewers because of floods,” Kiru said.
The main sticking point, according to Kiru, is fees.
For some restaurants, especially those that only access a small space for a CaféTO patio, “the return on their investment, the fees that are being asked, are at a point where it just does not make sense,” he said.
Kiru said boosting participation rates is particularly important in the coming years as Toronto hosts major concerts — like Oasis — and the FIFA World Cup comes to town in 2026.
“We need to encourage as many cafes or restaurants and food operators to engage in this and I just want to make sure that we don't hit the tipping point of more potential restaurants not coming and staying on,” he said.
