Jay Cohen knows he isn?t alone in coping with rising food costs.
“They?re all through the roof. Everything has gone up,” said Cohen, owner and executive chef of Mia Carolina, a Baltimore County restaurant that serves Italian and contemporary dishes.
“Flour, produce, veal ? you name it.”
Cohen, like other area restaurant owners, said he knows the challenge of managing increasing food prices.
He said he might have to raise meal prices to make a profit, but he doesn?t want to alienate his diners.
“We?re not being singled out,” Cohen said.
“I would expect a lot of restaurants are increasing prices, which is hard to do when the economy is softening. But with food prices increasing like they are, we have to get our side.”
Business is noticeably up at the restaurant from a year ago, Cohen said, mainly because Mia Carolina in Glyndon underwent a renovation this past August and September.
The owner did say business “has softened a little” since January.
“We?re trying to manage our expenses the best we can,” Cohen said.
In a recently released report from the Washington-based National Restaurant Association, 26 percent of restaurant operators surveyed in February identified the economy as the No. 1 challenge facing their businesses.
Food costs ranked second at 19 percent, and “building and maintain sales volume” was third at 15 percent.
“Although restaurant operators reported positive sales [in March] for the first time in four months, they were less optimistic about growth in the months ahead,” said Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of research and information for the restaurant association.
Even Morton?s Steakhouse, with locations in Baltimore City, Annapolis and Bethesda, is introducing new menu options and focusing on generating revenues from private parties to raise profits.
Morton?s recently introduced Bar 12.21, a bar-dining concept at the chain?s Annapolis location, to draw new customers.
“Even in a challenging economic environment, we continue to focus on several main company initiatives to build our business,” said Roger Drake, Morton?s chief communications officer.
But a segment of the restaurant industry appears to be recession-proof: Fast food.
“A slowing economy is actually good for places like us,” said Rick Ice, employment manager for DavCo, which owns 157 Wendy?s locations in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C., markets.
“When times are tight, parents will pick a place like Wendy?s for dinner rather than Applebee?s after soccer practice,” Ice said.
“People will continue to dine out, regardless of the economy.”
