Dining out on Thanksgiving

AMHERST, Mass. (WWLP) - More people will be dining out on Thanksgiving.

The National Restaurant Association (NRA) says an estimated 30 million Americans ate a Thanksgiving turkey that wasn't cooked by a family member last year.

But to the Five College area, the trend is not uncommon. Many students will be traveling home; meanwhile others will be looking to get their Thanksgiving turkey away from mom's kitchen.

“I enjoy cooking so that's part of the fun for me, so I don't think of it as a hassle. I like doing that. I can see why, because you do spend hours in the kitchen,” said Abby Crawford who will spend Thanksgiving with family.  

An NRA survey found convenience was among the top reasons why people chose to dine out.  30 Boltwood in Amherst is one of the few restaurants open on Thanksgiving and they expect a big crowd.

“Holidays are always big businesses for the restaurant. For a lot of people its families traveling in, so we're going to be close to 90% sold out this weekend,” said General Manager Robert Reeves.   

Traveling, not having enough space to host a dinner, and wanting to spend more time with family rounded out the top five reasons to dine out on the holiday. Joanie Marquez of Haydenville is one of those who wanted try something different.

“Since I do work in a restaurant I didn't want to cook. So, we tried to call here maybe yesterday hoping to get a reservation and they were booked. We were totally disappointed,” said Marquez on Tuesday afternoon.

Marquez and her friends will now have to resort to their back up plan. 

“We are going to hang out at my friend's house. She just invited us so we are really thankful that we have our friends here,” said Niko Kusworo of Northampton.  

30 Boltwood does plan to have a Thanksgiving-themed fare. The general manager says they expect a 15% boost in business this week.