Are weight loss drugs killing off the business lunch?
Appetite suppressing medicines may be an unsavoury problem for restaurateurs as well as diners
At a recent business lunch, one of the guests — who not long ago would have been busy choosing a second glass of wine — pushed their food around the plate fitfully, before eventually admitting defeat. As expense account meals go, it was not one for the ages.
Other City workers and restaurateurs have told the Financial Times about similar experiences, with dining companions and customers choosing only a single course, sometimes just a starter that serves as a main. Some have recounted after-work drinks parties where the main subject of conversation is also responsible for the newly slimmed features of the gossiping City financiers: the rapid rise in popularity of hunger-suppressing weight-loss jabs.
Restaurateurs, already facing the chill of rising labour costs, are now confronted with another problem: diners choosing to eat less food, less often.
Medicines such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, which are available privately in the US, UK and many other countries, help people lose weight by reducing hunger. Nearly 12 per cent of Americans have used them, according to a recent report from Rand. In the UK, clinical research provider Iqvia estimated 1.4mn people had purchased the medication by April. For many users, the drugs have been life changing, enabling them to improve health and fitness.
But by suppressing appetite, the trend brings a new threat to the already endangered art of the business lunch.
For many financiers, the weekday lunch has been — and remains — a key part of the job, a place to meet new contacts and develop relationships. Most older executives have a story to tell about how their best successes in securing a client or landing a deal have come from long lunches, some of which become even longer evenings.
“The long lunch provides a chance to go deeper into conversations that drive connection and understanding — the ordering of a coffee may be as much about the desire to continue the conversation as it is about the caffeine,” says Julie McKeen, partner and head of media and entertainment at executive search firm Odgers. “One person shuffling one course of a salad around will unbalance that careful calibration.”
Some users of the medicine are happier to talk about it than others in a business environment, which executives say can already cause confusion over the ordering and pacing of a meal.
Sir Nigel Boardman, former M&A partner at law firm Slaughter and May, who has overseen government inquiries including into the now collapsed Greensill, is upfront about using medication.
“I’m completely open about it. It’s a sensible health measure. It’s a bit like a personal trainer. I see Mounjaro in the same light. A lot of people are a bit embarrassed about it, [as if] it’s a sign that they have no self-control, [yet] they boast about having a personal trainer.”
He adds: “If the consequence is your business lunch is a bit shorter, so be it.” The only impact on his own lunches is that he matches his dining companion, rather than “wolf my food within 30 seconds and leave the other person” to catch up.
Restaurateurs are noticing changes — such as fewer orders for starters and puddings, and more unfinished plates — that they believe are at least partly fuelled by the increased use of weight loss drugs.
But many are optimistic that even if people might want to eat less, their desire to talk and do business in a more social environment outside the office remains.
Will Beckett, co-founder and chief executive of Hawksmoor, the popular British steakhouse, says the rise of weight loss drugs is something restaurateurs have started to consider. “It’s clearly more prevalent but yet people don’t really talk about it,” he says. “We have started to think about offering something that allows people with less appetite to still go out and enjoy being in a restaurant, because you still want to . . . socialise. You still want to eat delicious food.”
Some places have already introduced smaller portion offerings. Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck, for example, has introduced a “Mindful Experience” menu, reducing portions and the price of his signature tasting menu. “I’ve sensed for some time that the food landscape was gradually shifting and people were approaching eating in a new way — looking to feel fulfilled rather than feel full,” says Blumenthal. “The rapid rise of weight-loss drugs is, I believe, only going to speed this up.”
Chef Tom Brown is also shifting his menu at The Capital Hotel towards lighter, more flexible dining. Having used Mounjaro himself, he believes diners can adjust their eating to still enjoy lunch. “There’s still some stigma around using these medications. Personally, I’m happy to talk about it, but I suspect that for others, dining out can actually help keep it discreet”.
Kate Nicholls, who represents restaurants as head of industry body UK Hospitality, says there are now “lots of small plates, lots of sharing and reduced alcohol” across the trade.
But she expects a bigger effect from customers dining out socially, as business clients are more likely to “pay and not eat rather than order one between two or not going out at all”.
“Menus are being adjusted but I don’t think it’s going to be the end of [the] business lunch just a change — in the same way we adjusted to shorter lunches and less booze — the purpose remains,” she says.
Some restaurateurs had already seen a decline in the traditional company card-fuelled corporate lunch. David Moore, founder and owner of Michelin-starred Pied à Terre, says the “business lunch [has] been receding” as a proportion of sales over the years. “We see very little [of] the corporate card coming out at lunch time.” His private dining rooms at lunch are busier, however, with people “talking about AI and takeovers” and holding “closing meals” to celebrate deals.
Plenty of restaurants say they have seen no impact from the weight loss trend, with others arguing that dieting and portion control have been a factor for many diners for decades. Another insider notes the industry has weathered past fads, including the Atkins and 5:2 diets, and flexibility is key to survival. But with the UK government now looking to extend the availability of weight loss drugs, the effect is likely to be felt more widely.
Charlie Gilkes, founder of Inception group, which owns bars such as Mr Fogg’s, says restaurateur friends “have increasingly said they are noticing spend per head dropping due to this Ozempic craze” but he has not yet seen a reduction in drinking.
“On a positive note”, he adds, “there is some data to suggest some people are losing weight and feeling more self confident and more inclined to go dating so our sorts of places may actually benefit as they are popular date venues.”
In the meantime, there might be other short-term boosts: one insurance executive even tells the FT he is planning an “Ozempic party” before starting on the medicine later this year: a last hearty dinner to eat as much steak as he can before laying down his fork.