General (Details 1) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 27, 2018	Sep. 28, 2017	Sep. 27, 2018	Sep. 28, 2017
Numerator:
Net earnings attributable to The Marcus Corporation	$ 16,231	$ 10,978	$ 44,671	$ 30,555
Denominator:
Denominator for basic EPS	28,180	27,825	28,028	27,773
Effect of dilutive employee stock options	638	525	606	637
Denominator for diluted EPS	28,818	28,350	28,634	28,410
Common Stock [Member]
Net earnings per share - basic:
Common Stock	$ 0.60	$ 0.41	$ 1.65	$ 1.14
Net earnings per share - diluted:
Common Stock	0.56	0.39	1.56	1.08
Class B Common Stock [Member]
Net earnings per share - basic:
Common Stock	0.52	0.36	1.47	1.02
Net earnings per share - diluted:
Common Stock	$ 0.51	$ 0.37	$ 1.44	$ 1.01