The number of diners in Moscow cafes and restaurants has plummeted sharply, according to Sergei Mironov, ombudsman for the restaurant sector in Moscow, who spoke with Vedomosti business daily.
According to him, their number fell by 40–50% from January 24 to January 30 amid the Omicron wave of COVID-19.
Other market participants report that the trend started on January 18 when Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin extended the coronavirus restrictions until April 1, ordering Moscow businesses to keep 30% of employees telecommuting and retired persons, to stay at home.
“It took just two years of this pandemic for Muscovites to grow this responsible,” economist Sergei Khestanov, Associate Professor at RANEPA, noted ironically. “I wonder how soon Russians’ responsibility will reach the level of the Swedish. Or will the pandemic end sooner?”