Walt Disney, US Foods and Bloomin' Brands buyers tell seafood industry there's hope for foodservice in 2021

First the bad news: It's going to be a while before US restaurants bounce back from the pandemic.

Around 8 percent of US restaurants have permanently closed since the start of the pandemic, and around 70 percent of foodservice operators believe it will be more than six months until they see pre-COVID business levels, according to research from analytics firm Datassential.

However, when social distancing eases, consumers say they will want to spend more at restaurants to help them out of this deep and unprecedented economic hole.