Washington, D.C.’s restaurant industry is facing a grim start to the new year, with record closures and fewer new openings, according to the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington (RAMW).
In 2025, 92 restaurants closed across the city — up from 73 in 2024 and nearly double the number from 2022. If the trend continues, the city could surpass 100 closures by the end of 2026.
Meanwhile, openings have slowed sharply. Through November, 109 new restaurants opened, a 30% drop from last year, and only about half of those were mid-priced, neighborhood restaurants — the backbone of D.C.’s local dining scene.
“We’ll see faster casual, we’ll see less service in restaurants due to the shortage of workers, the increase in labor costs, and I think that’s just going to be a new norm,” said Shawn Townsend, president and CEO of RAMW.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by John Gonzalez over at WJLA ABC News 7
