Decline in New Zealand and Australian Cafe Culture: What Venues Can Do

The breakfast scene in Australia and New Zealand has long been a cherished part of the culinary landscape, with bustling cafes serving up artisanal coffees, hearty meals, and vibrant avocado toast platters. 

However, recent trends suggest that this breakfast culture may be under threat as consumers reassess their dining priorities. 

ResDiary’s Beyond the Booking 2025 report, which consulted 113 diners across Australia and New Zealand, revealed that 32% never dine out for breakfast, while the remaining 68% dine out for breakfast less than once a month – making it far from a regular occurrence.  

How often did you dine out for these meals in 2024?

This diner trend is reflected in venue data from Centrix that reveals in New Zealand, between August 2023 and August 2024, there were 47 liquidations of cafes, 24% more than the year previous. Cafes were also recognised to be “three times more likely to fail than typical New Zealand businesses.” 

Similarly, despite the previous boom in Australian cafe culture with a 30% increase in venues 2017-2023, one-in-ten is now projected to close in the coming year, according to 9News Melbourne. 

These are disappointing figures for cafes, especially when 61% of diners say they dine out for dinner at least once a month.

So, what makes evening dining more popular than breakfast restaurants, and what can venue operators do to revitalise New Zealand and Australian cafe culture to swing the numbers in their favour?  

Why the decline of cafes and breakfast dining? 

In Australia, reports from MacroBusiness indicate that the increasing price of coffee, which has now reached $7 per cup, is the cause of declining cafe culture.  

This isn’t the choice of venue operators however, as even the CEO of the Australian Restaurant and Cafe Association says that the pricing pressure comes from the “skyrocketing costs of beans”. 

Likewise, in New Zealand, CoffeeTalk highlights an increasingly grim outlook for cafes as business owners face mounting challenges and diminished foot traffic, presumably due to the same coffee bean price hike.  

At the beginning of 2025, they stated: “The average green coffee price, excluding all other input costs, had lifted from $3.76 a kilogram in 2020 to $10.18 a kilogram in 2024 and was at $13.97 so far in January. For many cafés, coffee is a cornerstone of their offering, and price hikes on beans add to the squeeze on already tight margins."

This could be why diners are investing in home coffee machines and saving their dining out for the evenings, instead of grabbing coffee at cafes and breakfast restaurants.  

Aside from economic pressures, other factors could be contributing to the decline of New Zealand and Australian cafe culture too, such as: 

• Lifestyle Changes: The rise of remote work and flexible schedules has disrupted traditional breakfast hours, reducing the need for early morning cafe visits.
  

• Health and Convenience Trends: Many diners opt for quick, healthy breakfast alternatives at home rather than dining out. Beyond the Booking 2025 also noted that 25% of Kiwis that dined out less in 2024 cited health reasons as to the reason why.

How cafe owners can attract more diners 

It’s not all doom and gloom though, as the Beyond the Booking 2025 report also revealed that 27% of diners expect to dine out more in 2025.  

The top reason for expecting to dine out more, stated by 58% of the respondents who expected to increase their dining habits, was having more opportunities to spend time with friends and family. This is a key insight that venue operators can use, tailoring promotions and initiatives towards groups and special events to entice diners into their cafes.

Here are some of our suggestions for innovative ways that breakfast restaurants and cafes can adapt to challenges and reignite consumer interest:

1. Loyalty Programs 

In 2023, QSR Aus noted that subscription-based loyalty schemes were “starting to gain serious buzz in QSR industries across the world.”  

Perhaps it’s time for New Zealand and Australian cafes to borrow a page from UK-based Pret A Manger and US-based Panera’s playbooks and introduce set-price monthly subscriptions.  

This model attracts diners in by offering a good price for one product (coffee) which in turn becomes additional product purchases (breakfast food, additional drinks for colleagues, take-away items, etc.). It also encourages repeat visits from diners – making your venue their ‘spot’ and creating a sense of community. 

Diners love restaurant loyalty software, and offering rewards, discounts, and promotions is a great way to encourage repeat bookings at your cafe.  

With ResDiary’s Talkbox CRM integration, venue operators can collect diner data at time of booking and push this information into tailored marketing automations with loyalty rewards – making crafting a loyal programme simple as can be. 

2. Healthier Menu Offerings

Venue operators can attract more diners by adapting their menus and highlighting seasonal ingredients and dietary preferences to cater to evolving consumer tastes.  

We know that 23% of respondents that dined out less in 2024 than 2023 cited health reasons as to why, and for Aussie and Kiwi diners who said they might dine out less in 2025, 31% gave the same reason.  

When health is such a significant factor for diners when deciding whether or not to dine out, cafes and restaurants need to consider this in their service offering and provide healthier options for those who are able to come out. 

Some of our suggestions for healthier menu offerings are: 

• Plant-based power bowls 

• Whole-grain alternatives 

• Superfood options, like matcha and turmeric 
  
  
• High-protein, low-carb and dairy-free
   

3. Enhanced Dining Experiences

58% of Beyond the Booking 2025 respondents who expected to dine out more, said that this was down to having more opportunities to spend time with friends and family.  

So, cafe owners can take this insight and use it to create a warm, inviting atmosphere that goes beyond just food – as dining out is increasingly becoming an opportunity for connection as well as just good grub. 

That’s why we’ve picked events as one of our key areas that hospitality businesses can focus on in 2025 to drive additional revenue growth. 

Hosting engaging events is a fantastic way for breakfast restaurants and cafes in Australia and New Zealand to attract diners and reinvigorate the morning dining scene. 

Hosting themed breakfast events on special occasions like International Breakfast Day and Mother’s Day, for example, or offering live music from local artists in the daytime at the weekends can make dining out a more memorable and worthwhile experience.  

Here are some of our suggestions for cafe-friendly events: 

• Seasonal Brunch Pop-Ups with tailored set-menus for Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter.  

• Coffee Tasting and Barista Workshops – this will even help pull some of the at-home coffee makers into your venue, to get your top tips! 

• Wellness and Mindfulness Mornings that offer yoga, pilates or meditation workshops followed by your healthy smoothies or acai bowls. 

• Farm-to-Table breakfast experiences with ingredients sourced directly from local farms. 

• Meet the Makers: Showcase local artisans, from bakers to jam-makers, and offer tastings. 

• Kids' Activity Mornings that include crafts or storytelling to keep kids entertained while parents enjoy breakfast. 

Download the full Beyond the Booking 2025 report to discover how ResDiary can help support you with events. 

4. Collaborations and Partnerships 

Given Australia and New Zealand's strong community focus, events held in collaboration with local businesses, farms, and artists will likely resonate.  

Venues can partner with local farmers, bakers, and coffee roasters to promote a “support local” ethos.  

This can attract diners who value sustainability and community-driven initiatives. It can also drive traffic from their businesses to yours to boost your communal audience.  

Diners rely heavily on recommendations when choosing where to dine out, and if the other businesses in your local area are happy to work with you, share your promotions in their shops and talk highly of your venue, then that’s super helpful for attracting diners. 

Summary

While the cafe scene faces undeniable challenges, there are still so many opportunities for revival.  

By embracing innovation, enhancing the customer experience, and staying attuned to evolving consumer needs, breakfast restaurants can reclaim their place as a cherished part of the dining landscape and boost New Zealand and Australian cafe culture once again.