The Christmas and the year-end celebrations have not brought any cheer to the numerous pubs and restaurants around the country. Majority of them have seen flat footfalls and sales during the week leading up to the New Year compared with the previous year, said restaurant experts.

Usually, up market restaurants are flooded with guests in December. However, it is no longer so. Bookings during the season were lower than ever, say restaurant experts. Part of the reason could be that inflation has forced all the eateries and pubs to increase prices substantially over 2011 Christmas. “It’s not business as usual. While the crowd was good, we have seen almost flat sales during the last week of December,” said Dinesh Naik, assistant restaurant manager of Galaxy Entertainment Corporation, part of Future Group.

The country’s entertainment zone also faced the blues on the back of police crackdown on partygoers, people opting for house parties and weekend-trips. “We have not got any business from Delhi due to the recent rape case. Bangalore was somewhat good. However, in Mumbai we have seen flat sales and low footfalls. People were not in a mood to party,” said Dinesh Shetty, assistant general manager at F-Lounge Diner Bar.

The grim hotel scenario is despite the fact that this time of the year upmarket cafes and restaurants offer special packages to woo revellers. Given how crucial the season is to earnings, the country’s party joints have a plethora of attractions such as special buffet menu, fancy cocktails, and live bands to attract customers. Even the traditional foreign tourist traffic that throngs Mumbai in winter seems missing as hard times in the US and Europe curtails tourist traffic in the city.

At Park Hotel, Kolkata, the picture is no different. “Park Street being the most vibrant place in Kolkata, we’ve been able to attract crowd. However, slowdown blues continues with flat sales,” said a senior official of Park Hotel, Kolkata on condition of anonymity.