One customer all morning. That’s January for you. Has nothing to do with the “Let’s Go Brandon” banner or the new sign about electric vehicles. Zero connection.
Monday morning, January 5th, 2026. I’ve been standing behind the register at Liberty Grill since 6 AM. It is now 10:47 AM, and we’ve served exactly one customer: Harold, who comes every day regardless. That’s what happens when a January restaurant slow period hits Main Street. Nothing to do with the business itself.
Sheryl, my wife, suggested this morning that “maybe people are still recovering from the holidays.” Then she suggested, quieter, that “maybe some of the newer signs are a little much.” I reminded her that the signs are what make us different. The signs are why our loyal customers stay loyal.
She went to the back to “work on the books.” She’s been working on the books a lot lately.
The January Restaurant Slow Reality
Let me explain something about the restaurant business that the Yelp critics don’t understand: January is slow for everyone. People are broke from Christmas. They’re eating leftovers. They’re trying their little New Year’s diets. This is national. This is economic. This has nothing to do with the new sign I put up last week comparing certain politicians to breakfast items.
Harold loved that sign, by the way. He laughed for almost ten seconds. That’s reach.
Maria, our cook, asked if she could take a few hours off since “nobody’s coming in.” I said no. We stay ready. That’s the Liberty Grill difference. We’re here even when America isn’t hungry yet.
What The Numbers Actually Show
Last January, we averaged 11 customers per day. This January, we’re on pace for 8. That’s a 27% decline, which sounds bad until you factor in the broader economic situation and the three one-star Yelp reviews that appeared over the holidays—clearly coordinated, all mentioning the same sign about immigration.
My grandfather opened this restaurant in 1974. It was slow in January back then too. Probably. I don’t have the records, but I know him, and he would have understood. Unlike Tyler, my son, who hasn’t visited since Thanksgiving and claims he’s “working a lot.” At a Panera. As if bread is that complicated.
Standing Firm
Some business owners would see an empty restaurant and think about “adapting.” I see an empty restaurant and think about principle. The customers who aren’t here? They’re making a choice. A wrong choice. But that’s on them, not on the 23 signs that now cover most of the south wall.
Harold finished his eggs twenty minutes ago. He’s reading the paper now. Says it’s “nice and quiet in here.” He’s right. It is quiet. The kind of quiet that comes from standing for something.
The January restaurant slow period will end eventually. The signs won’t.
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