This year marked Flying Saucer Draught Emporium ’s 25th year in Downtown Houston. The longtime beer bar has been a popular fixture at 705 Main Street. And it’s also been a key witness to the troubles that have plagued many businesses like it in the city’s beating heart.
Last week on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Flying Saucer spoke out about the elephant in the room: declining foot traffic. Joshua Justice, the pub’s marketing manager, told Chron the amount of people in Downtown has dropped since the pandemic. That’s affected street-level restaurants and bars, including Molly’s Pub which had its last day of service over the weekend. Though the pandemic and remote work has been blamed for much of the dying lunch rush, that isn’t the case for nightlife establishments like Flying Saucer.
“To put it all on work from home is pretty short-sighted,” said Justice. Several factors, including inflation and shifts in consumer behaviors, have also contributed to declines, but perhaps the most egregious, according to Flying Saucer, may be parking lots…