Re:Regal and Cineworld reportedly closing all theaters in US...
by morsch on Sunday October 04, 2020 @03:32PM
(#24681656)
Coffee places and snack joints fulfill an immediate need: I need a coffee/food now. I'm rarely urgently in need of a movie.
Restaurants are more comparable, I suppose, but cooking a restaurant quality meal takes time, effort, and skill, turning on Netflix doesn't. You're right about the social aspects, though it's often a downside as much as an upside.
I can make coffee or cook food at home, why would I go some place and pay to do the same thing in a crowd?
The reason is because these businesses are able to deliver a better product than most of us have access to at home. There is also a huge communal and social aspect to doing these together in public rather than alone or in very small groups at home.