Breastaurant

A breastaurant is a restaurant that requires female waiting staff to be skimpily-dressed. The term dates from the early 1990s, after restaurant chain Hooters opened in the United States.[1] The format has since been adopted by other restaurants, including Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery, Twin Peaks, Ojos Locos, Bikinis Sports Bar & Grill, The WingHouse Bar & Grill, Redneck Heaven and Bombshells Bar & Grill.[2][3][4]

Waitresses at Bikinis Sports Bar & Grill (Austin, 2010)

These restaurants often use a sexual double-entendre brand name and may also have appropriate themes, both in decoration and menu. The restaurants may offer perks for customers, such as alcoholic drinks and flirty servers.[5]

History
A waitress at Twin Peaks washes a customer's car (Austin, 2012)
Hooters employees in Shanghai, China, 2007

Hooters is credited as the first breastaurant, having operated since 1983. Other companies soon adopted the format.[6] According to food industry research firm Technomic, the top three breastaurant chains in the United States after Hooters each had sales growth of 30% or more in 2011.[7]

In October 2012, Bikinis Sports Bar & Grill successfully registered the term "breastaurant" as a trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office; but as of May 24, 2019, the trademark lapsed under section 8, "Continued use not filed within Grace Period".[8] Bikinis Sports Bar & Grill had closed its last restaurant on December 23, 2018.[9]

Male variations

Restaurants staffed by males, with a similar focus on server appearance, include Tallywackers, featuring scantily clad men, which opened in Dallas, Texas, in May 2015 and closed in August 2016.[10][11] In Japan, there are pop-up establishments such as Macho Cafe[12] and Macho Meat Shop,[13] where brawny men serve food and drinks.

Criticism

Breastaurants have been criticized for sexually objectifying women.[14]

See also

References
  1. Mikin, Mark (June 27, 2011). "Hostess of the Week, 'Breastaurant' Edition". Esquire. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
  2. The Week's Editorial Staff (June 26, 2012). "The 'breastaurant' boom: Why Hooters knockoffs are thriving". Archived from the original on June 29, 2012. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
  3. "Breastaurant Boom: Hooters-style eateries experience a mini-boom". Fox News. March 25, 2015.
  4. Edwards, Tanya (December 13, 2022). "11 Hooters Copycat Restaurants You Never Knew Existed". Eat This, Not That!.
  5. Doctorow, Cory (June 8, 2011). ""Breastaurants" are Hooters 2.0". Boing Boing. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
  6. "'Breastaurants' with 'view' booming in struggling US dining industry". The Indian Express. June 27, 2012. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
  7. Yglesias, Matthew (June 25, 2012). "The "Breastaurant" Business Is Booming (Sort of)". Slate. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  8. "Breastaurant Trademark Information". Trademarkia. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
  9. Dinges, Gary (December 13, 2018). "'Breastaurant' chain Bikini's shuttering last remaining location, rolling out new concept". Austin American-Statesman. Archived from the original on December 13, 2018. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
  10. "Tallywackers, Dallas' male Hooters, has closed | GuideLive". GuideLive. August 10, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
  11. Peter Holley (June 2, 2015). "There's finally a Hooters-style restaurant featuring men. It's called Tallywackers". Washington Post.
  12. Brian Ashcraft (May 15, 2015). "Japan's Macho Cafe Is Like Hooters in Reverse". Kotaku. Gawker Media.
  13. Brian Ashcraft (November 4, 2015). "Japan's Macho Restaurant Serves Up Real Beefcakes". Kotaku. Gawker Media.
  14. Saxena, Jaya (June 19, 2018). "Is There a Place for Hooters in 2018?". GQ. Archived from the original on November 29, 2020. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
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