The answer is not, according to restaurant owners in the city.

Take the Fourth Floor restaurant at Harvey Nichols. This rather elegant eating place can boast a turnover of around 160 tables in four hours, just as it always has.

Other restaurants across Leeds also report no loss in trade: Malmaison on Sovereign Street; Cafe Sahara, Eastgate and Georgetown Restaurant, Briggate all have steady bookings.

Anthony Flinn, owner of Anthony's on Boar Lane, has bookings for the next three months and said he believed the credit crunch meant people were actually eating out more than usual.

He said: "Unusually, we are up year on year. I think we had a bit of a dip last year, when the credit crunch first kicked in. People were cautious and pulled in their belts.

"I think we anticipated people feeling the financial pinch but because people are giving up holidays and not buying new cars and not selling their houses, they are eating out more. The restaurant trade seems to be okay at the moment."

Anthony, who also owns Anthony's at Flannels and Anthony's Patisserie in the Victoria Quarter, recently announced a £650,000 investment to create The Piazza by Anthony at Leeds Corn Exchange – a vote of confidence in the city and its ability to weather any economic storm if ever there was one.

However, he added that despite a booming trade, restaurants still had to be wary.

He said: "Having said that, we have tweaked our menus, introducing keener prices and staying away from some of the more expensive things. In that sense, we have had to be more creative.

"The area where you do notice it is in the kind of wine you sell. People are going for less expensive bottles.

"Anyone can manage during the good times but I think there's a real trick to managing in the difficult times. It's about anticipating the market and making changes well before things happen, instead of knee-jerk reactions."

A tasting menu at Anthony's on Boar Lane will set you back £60 but you will have your table for the entire evening and get to sample a range of gourmet food and wine.

If you don't fancy spending that much, you can grab a two-course meal for £19.95, or three courses for £23.95.

Jack Fowler, manager of Indian bar/restaurant East on Richardshaw Lane, Pudsey, which opened in November, said: "The credit crunch has not really affected us. We opened in November and it's going really well.

"In fact, it's better than it ever has been. Saturdays are our busiest nights, followed by Fridays and then its a close call between Thursday and Sunday."

Street vendors are also doing well as we continue to buy our lunches, rather than succumbing to the pack-up which might have been expected during these financially lean times.

Michael Ainsworth from Bond Street Jackets, says he does a roaring trade Monday to Friday selling jacket potatoes, though he didn't want to reveal exact numbers.

He said his clientele were mainly office workers, who descend on his pitch in droves come lunchtime.

He said: "I would say 90 per cent of our customers are from the banks and offices. We do a good trade most days here. You can get a jacket for £2.70."


What's in your lunchbox?

We hit the streets to find out exactly what Leeds people are eating for their lunch these days, and how much they are spending. Here's what they said:

Joy Sykes, 19, from Leeds, a barmaid, normally spends about £3 on her lunch but said she had not been affected by the credit crunch. She said: "It hasn't affected me at all. If I want some lunch, I'll buy some."

Student Rosy Smith, 19, said: "I'm on a diet at the moment, so all I have is this cereal bar. If I was at college, I would probably go to Morrisons and spend £3 or £4 on a sandwich, juice and a packet of Quavers. If I was going out to a restaurant I would expect to spend about £10. That's more exciting than a packed lunch."

Robert Connor, 48, who works at Leeds Art Gallery, said: "I've only just started working in the town centre and I would normally spend about £4 on my lunch, however, today I got a deal on two cheese pasties for 99p and a drink for 95p, so I've done well today. I think things are changing for the worse, though. Things are more expensive."

Laura Wilson, 21, of Rothwell, a post-graduate student in English at Lancaster University, said: "I don't mind spending £3 or £4 at lunchtime. Some places have a two-for-one deal on anyway, or they have two meals for £10, which I think is fine.

"I'm not a fan of soggy sarnies, I prefer to have something fresh, like a salad. I will go somewhere like Revolution in Millennium Square."

Tom Scott, 21, from Chapel Allerton, a student in medieval history at Durham University, said: "I usually eat out. Boots do a great lunch for just £2.99.

"I would spend more on lunch, up to £10 probably, but you wouldn't want to be doing that all the time. In fact, if anything, it's probably cheaper to eat out now. The price of bread has doubled to about £1.60 a loaf now so in that sense, it's cheaper to eat out."