Headaches for Columbia restaurant owners as prices for ingredients, supplies - Charleston Post Courier

Most years, chicken wings are sold to restaurants at roughly $75 a case. During peak times, like the Super Bowl, it could rise to $100.

Marty Dreesen, owner of Five Points' Bar None, noted that these days that price is around $162.

Wings are the most publicized goods to face fluctuation throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but the movement is seen with different goods now, too. Dreesen pointed to a five gallon tub of fryer oil being sold for $39, rather than the normal $23. Kitchen gloves have almost tripled in cost from before the pandemic to now.

“I did raise all my food prices maybe a month and a half ago ... a dollar across the board for everything,” Dreesen noted. “Even the things that are still the same price, you raise them a dollar to cover the cost.”

Restaurants have struggled in various ways during COVID-9. There were the early shutdowns and subsequent restrictions, an ongoing labor crisis and, now, concerns over the re-emergence of the virus in the form of the Delta variant.

For Columbia restaurants, it has created headaches as they navigate higher prices for ingredients and equipment and fluctuations in availability. It comes as they’ve battled similar factors earlier in the pandemic, but it's now more pronounced and further complicated by the labor crisis.

Throughout Columbia, price hikes, notices of shortages of certain items or market pricing of some dishes are becoming more and more commonplace. At Steve's Deli Subs in West Columbia last week, a market price list for certain items was available. The nearby Zesto had a sign posted noting chicken wing supply issues. 

Boca Grande Burrito chef and owner David Grillo explained he has avoided changing his menu prices, but has felt the effects. He has spent some days driving through the area to various stores in search of certain goods — recently, plastic forks.

Grillo detailed that he’s meticulous with monitoring his business' margins, and his costs are 3.5 percent higher than where he would like them to be. Based on his evaluation, the reason isn’t labor or waste. It's the rising prices of goods.

The shifting prices of meats have led him to push chicken specials at his restaurant, in lieu of beef. Yet, with the latter’s price now stabilizing some, he plans to push beef instead. But those efforts have wrenches thrown in them, too, as when chicken thighs were unavailable for about a week from one of his providers.

Grillo said he’s positioned his restaurant to rely on readily available goods. He finds that using a specialty product can lead to unexpected shortages and can disrupt his kitchen’s system. Recently, however, that’s been an issue for him despite his usage of standard products.

“It’s frustrating,” Grillo said. “That’s where the headache comes in."

The main culprit is the ongoing labor crisis, which is stretching throughout adjacent industries, like food production, said University of South Carolina senior lecturer George Hendry.

He explained that labor shortages in production and distribution are creating struggles for supply to keep up with the demand from restaurants. That has either resulted in price hikes or some products becoming altogether unavailable.

“We’re just seeing the beginnings of it,” Hendry posited, suggesting the issue could worsen over time.

Hendry also doubles as the director of the on-campus restaurant/learning lab the McCutchen House. They charge a flat rate of $11.95 for their meals and that price hasn’t wavered, but he explained the restaurant acts as a course for the college’s students, meaning it avoids labor costs.

Still, he’s told his chef to avoid certain products with volatile pricing, like beef, in future menus to avoid those costs. Additionally, the program is looking to expand soon in a partnership with a local church, and costs of kitchen equipment seem to be spiking as well, Hendry noted.

“We’re not looking to (raise) our prices,” he said. “But a real restaurant can’t take that hit.”

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