NPD's Consumer Reports on Eating Share Trends, which tracks consumer usage of commercial foodservice, reports foodservice traffic increased 0.2 percent over a year ago for the year ended in November 2008, and consumer spending grew 2 percent.

Promotion-related visits supported all commercial foodservice gains, NPD reported, as deal visits increased 6 percent and non-deal visits decreased 1 percent. For the annual period ended in November, 23 percent of all traffic involved some type of consumer-recognized deal. More than 90 percent of the increase in deal visits came from quick-service restaurants.

"I don't believe consumers, no matter the state of the economy, will abandon restaurants entirely, they will just use them differently — more cost-consciously," said Harry Balzer, vice president and chief industry analyst for NPD. "The restaurants that deliver value and make it easy to get food cheaper, in new and compelling ways, will win."

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