Growing "Breastaurant" Trend Makes Us Want to Stay Home for Dinner
By Anthony Todd in Food on Jun 13, 2011 3:20PM
We received a press released a few weeks back that made us do a double take. The subject line: "Turn any Restaurant into a Breastaurant!" The release, advertising BreastaurantUniforms.com, a company founded by Terra Watson, a former Dallas Cowboys cheerleader, promises that restaurant owners can increase traffic by putting their waitresses in sexy, revealing outfits. After some quick mocking on Twitter, we let it drop like so many other bad ideas we get in our email - but apparently it's not dead. Consumerist reports today that these establishments are growing in popularity despite the recession, and new chains are popping up to compete with Hooters, the old standard.
Consumerist quotes Entrepreneur magazine, wondering "why is this segment so popular?" "It starts with comfort," says Darren Tristano, executive vice president of Technomic, a food-industry consulting firm in Chicago. "These concepts are growing by offering a different level of service and attentiveness." Comfort for whom, exactly? According to the original press release, " I [Watson] know what makes the girls feel sexy and comfortable, and also what the customers like to see. Our uniforms cover what needs to be covered, but shows off the waitresses’ assets."
Somehow we doubt the waitresses who have to wear these outfits are all that "comfortable." The argument could be made that the objectification of scantily-clad waitresses at chains like Hooters has one important protection - the reputation of the chains is well known enough that a waitress knows what she is signing up for. Unfortunately, with this new service promising to help any eating establishment "become an instant Breastaurant," we worry that this will be spreading fast. The recent controversy over the Tilted Kilt in Evanston brings this issue close to home. According to consumerist, Tilted Kilt considers itself a "PG-13" alternative to its competitors. "When a guy empties his pockets on the dresser and his wife sees a Tilted Kilt receipt, it's going to be fine," said founder Ron Lynch. The fact that, at some "breastaurants," that wouldn't be fine, gives the lie to the innocence of this trend. We prefer eating establishments with good food and a staff that is treated well, and we don't need our hamburgers to come with a side of objectification.