Restaurant owners in Timmins face rising food costs
Restaurants in Timmins are doing what they can to keep the doors open as food and production costs continue to rise.
Two owners said rising costs are a big problem as they try to keep their respective businesses going during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Casey's Grill and Bar in Timmins has been serving customers for thirty-eight years. It’s owner said she's never seen food prices climb like they have since the onset of the pandemic.
Now, Sylvia Reid is struggling on what decisions to make.
“We haven’t raised our prices here in seven years. So now with the cost and everything on produce and meat. It’s hard with these times. So, how do you put up your prices now,” said Reid
“And we were also looking to revamp our menu, and it’s so hard cause you never know from week-to-week what you’re going to receive and what you’re not going to receive."
She said other owners have told her they're considering taking Cesar salad off menus. Her kitchen manager, Todd Fountain, said the price of lettuce has more than doubled in a year.
“Most of our produce is American right now and like Sylvia said, romaine lettuce is nearing $120 a case for twenty-four heads, and iceberg is even more than that; it’s over $120 a case. I just think they need to figure out the supply chain issues," Fountain said.
At Radical Gardens, owners and staff said they're always trying to come up with new ways to stay afloat.
Owner Brianna Humphrey said costs to give her staff a living wage, and to maintain its eco-friendly standing and high quality menus, -as left her with no choice but to increase prices.
"Cause our blanket cost increase is about three to four per-cent and then on top of that you have anywhere from a three-hundred per cent increase to like an eight per cent increase. We had to do something about this or we weren’t going to be around much longer," said Humphrey.
She said the restaurant industry needs to change as a whole alluding to the issue of staff shortages as a result of people not making a living wage, or receiving food from their places of work, calling it unacceptable.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Expert warns of food consumption habits amid rising prices
A new survey by Dalhousie University's Agri-Food Analytics Lab asked Canadians about their food consumption habits amid rising prices.
Documents reveal Ottawa's efforts to get Loblaw, Walmart on board with grocery code
It was evident to the federal government as early as last fall that Loblaw and Walmart might be holdouts to the grocery code of conduct, jeopardizing the project's success.
opinion The special relationship between King Charles and the Princess of Wales
Royal commentator Afua Hagan writes that when King Charles recently admitted Catherine to the Order of the Companions of Honour, it not only made history, but it reinforced the strong bond between the King and his beloved daughter-in-law.
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
'I just want to be safe': Ukrainian man in Canada faces limbo amid consular freeze
A recent decision to restrict consular services for fighting-aged Ukrainian men has made a Ukrainian man in Canada feel less certain of his next steps — and worried he could be pulled back to the war.
B.C. tenants evicted for landlord's use after refusing large rent increase to take over neighbouring suite
Ashley Dickey and her mother rented part of the same Coquitlam duplex in three different decades under three different landlords.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
$70M Lotto Max winners kept prize a secret from family for 2 months
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.