The Third Place
People have been eating outside of the home for a long, long time, buying food from a street vendor or taking a travel break at a roadside inn.
In their book, Dining Out: A Global History of Restaurants, Elliott Shore and Katie Rawson contend that the very first restaurants came into being around 1100 A.D. in China.
Trade was bustling during the 12th-century Song Dynasty, and these prototypical restaurants catered to business travelers, complete with hotels, bars, and brothels. According to Chinese documents from the era, the variety of restaurant options in the 1120s resembled a downtown tourist district in a 21st-century city.
Restaurants have always played an essential role in the business, social, intellectual and artistic life of a thriving society. Beyond the basic purpose of providing food and drink, they have historically fulfilled a human need for connection and shaped social relations. It's often where business is conducted and great ideas are born.
An example: During a brainstorming session in a restaurant, Discovery Channel executives were tossing out ideas for new shows. Someone said, “You know what would be awesome? Shark Week.” The idea written down on a cocktail napkin became a reality.
The major events of life, personal and professional, are celebrated in restaurants. Acquaintances become friends around a table in the safe and controlled environment of a restaurant. Individuals become lovers across a restaurant table, sometimes.
In short, fulfill a huge need in communities. They serve as a vital “third place” for people to gather, away from their homes and workplaces, and when they close, the loss is keenly felt.
By the end of 2020, Covid-19 had led to approximately 110,000 permanent restaurant closures in the USA—17 percent of all restaurants in the country—according to the National Restaurant Association. Local media around the country is filled with long lists of all the spots that have gone under since the pandemic began.
The cafes, coffee shops, diners, barbecue joints, and pizza parlors that dot every neighborhood and town are doing the unsung work of knitting together the social fabric, one meal or cup of coffee at a time.
Researchers found that these businesses gave patrons a reason to get out of the house—and, if they were in walking distance, a chance to get a bit of exercise en route—and a place to feel connected.
In times of crisis, people tend to gather and commiserate together. Covid-19 has led to a secondary pandemic of loneliness and depression. And while we need third places more than ever, because of public-health considerations, we can’t have them, at least not in the form that’s most needed.
I can't wait until I can regularly break bread with others and support my local food and drinking establishments.
This is the lead story in BBA Economic Digest, a weekly online publication for economic developers and business people. To subscribe, go to barberadvisors.com