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The fine food and wine business is dire. I am in the business, and I don't know a single person who is not struggling right now. Some states are hit harder than others, true, but people are not spending money on higher-end food and wine.
In my city, 42 restaurants shuttered their doors last year, not all were fine dining, but a fair enough number were. You notice the difference.

I'm in St Louis, and my friend who works in the industry says that there are several notable restaurants on the verge of going bust--vendors and staff unpaid for weeks/months, backtaxes owed, etc. A couple of our favorites have already closed--places that were loved by many people and were cooking great food. It's a bummer.

I live in Cambridge, UK, and the pubs and restaurants are empty, while our lone supermarket is packed. Things still get busy on weekends, but people aren't going out for pub lunches or restaurant meals on weekdays.

We get a deal where we get two-for-one pizzas and two-for-one cinema tickets on Wednesdays, so that's our 'date night'. While it's less of a problem in the UK (as servers earn a decent wage) I want to remind everyone who gets two-for-one or a freebie to tip your server based on the amount of a full-priced meal. It's only fair.

Right now in my husband's restaurant there are three managers from corporate fine-dining restaurants who are working as servers. They were all laid off from salaried positions. Payroll is always a controllable cost.

Sadly, people who only dine out on Fridays and Saturdays assume that restaurants are doing fine bc Fridays and Saturdays are always busier than say, Tuesday, but most places need to do decent business during the whole week. We usually see multiple corporate/business dinners during the week, but these days we aren't seeing the volume of corporate dining as in the past. And when they do show, it's a real toss-up how generously they are able entertain their clients.

I've worked mostly in low-volume establishments. Where the per person check averages more than make up for doing less than 100 covers every night (with exception on NYeve, VDay, Mother's Day). Quality not quantity. I just spoke to the Managing Partner of my old restaurant and he grudgingly admitted that sales were down slightly. The nice thing is that he might be in a protected niche--old money, old habits.

To some extent, this is when good management is most important. Control costs, maintain quality, keep up morale, drive word of mouth advertising, be creative about keeping your name out there.

I'm somewhat bugged by:
Restaurateurs are getting unprecedented numbers of front of the house job applications from folks with long, successful histories in other fields.
I'm not bugged that you wrote it, but the assumption by some that anyone can wait tables or bartend. My BIL, a lawyer, thought that he could walk into any bar and get a bartending gig and was baffled when no one called him for an interview. I explained that most of the good places are looking for experience--just like any other field. When the real estate market started slumping, a realtor wanted to work as the private dining director (a full time, salaried plus bonuses, managerial postition) at my husband's restaurant...part-time. Why do people think that the restaurant business doesn't have dedicated professionals at work?

Both front & back staff have been cut at the restaurant I work at. Its not that our numbers are down though. I think it is anticipation by management in case we slump so they'll still make their numbers. People are ordering less (check average is down). But, fortunately, my tip percentage is the same. I appreciate all of those guests who do not do their cost cutting that way. Especially since, with less staff, I'm not sure they are getting the attention they deserve.

The silver lining may be made of lead. Though some of the cream may rise to the top, you get the sense that some rising young stars might be forced to pursue other careers if there are too many fish in the pond. This is a sad day for good food...

I think that the higher end restaurants and wineries are indeed seeing a downturn. More and more families and single folk are looking for less expensive but tasty fair in my area here in the Tampa Bay area. At least that's my experience.

But opportunity abounds for restaurant owners. I know of a Mediterranean restaurant, Zeko's, that just opened up in the last 6months up the street from me. It cost over a Million dollars for the owner to get it going. But the place is frequently busy whenever I go there because the atmosphere is family and the food is really good. They pride themselves on the quality of food for a decent price. The typical meal is $8 with a drink for me (generally a really good gyro).

That isn't to say that other restaurants aren't seeing a down turn. Some are. But I think the ones that are willing to work hard at gaining a relationship with the customer are the ones that will survive.