Diners in Washington, D.C., have slowed down on eating out as President Donald Trump imposes a heavy-handed crackdown on the region that many say is unnecessary.
OpenTable’s data shows the difference in the number of seated diners for restaurants that use the platform. It found that restaurant attendance in D.C. dropped 24% the week of Aug. 11-17, 2025, compared to Aug. 12-18, 2024, which was D.C. Restaurant Week. It also saw a 7% decrease from the previous week.
As a whole, however, dining in D.C. has seen a 5% increase this year so far, according to OpenTable.
On Aug. 11, Trump, a convicted felon who pardoned hundreds of Jan. 6 rioters, announced that he’d mobilize the National Guard troops and take control of the capital’s police force to “rescue our nation’s capital from crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor and worse.” That same day, dining out dropped 16% compared to Aug. 11, 2024. It then dropped 27% on Aug. 12, 31% on Aug. 13, 29% on Aug. 14, 25% on Aug. 15, 20% on Aug. 16 and 21% on Aug. 17.
The research is not all-encompassing, does not explain increases or decreases in the numbers and, as such, cannot directly be linked to Trump’s crackdown. But D.C.’s data from last week stands in stark contrast to data from other regions, which largely saw positive trends.
