By Jane de Graaff|
The cost of everything is going up. Interest rates are through the roof, iceberg lettuce is famously more than $11 per head (if you can even get it), and energy companies are sending people to competitors because they can't match prices.
But if the cost of the weekly grocery bill is going up for families, how can we possibly expect to keep paying the same for the meals that we enjoy eating out?
If you know, logically, that raspberries are $9 a punnet right now, how can we expect the cost of a berry compote on waffles in a cafe to stay the same as it was when those berries were $4? At what point does the hospitality industry simply have to pass the cost on to consumers and what does that even look like?
"We're absorbing as much as we can," says Carlo Maggio, owner of Maggio's Cafe and Bakery in the Sydney suburb Cammeray. "If you gradually raise prices instead of doing it all at once, and only increase it on a couple of things at a time, it's not so hard for our customers to take."
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A key tactic for the family-friendly cafe is to change out garnishes and ingredients that are pushing the price up on some items so the price of other staples like croissants and coffee can stay the same for regular, daily consumers.
"With coffee, we're holding out as long as we can," says Maggio. "With our cakes, we look for the fruits that are on special. With our pancakes, we've changed what goes on top, and we simplify or cut out other things."
Don't even ask him about rocket or iceberg lettuce: "We just can't get it, or it's too expensive."
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It's the little tweaks here and there that allow the team to make the increases as painless as possible for customers, but it adds a lot of management and planning to the back end. Where once the head chef was able to work with one or two suppliers, he now has to shop around to find items he needs at a cost that is manageable for the sustainability of the business.
One way around this for shelf-stable products is to buy in bulk when items are available, which is something Maggio's Cafe began doing back with the supply disruptions of the pandemic, flood and fire crises.
While Maggio does what he can to stave off passing the rising costs onto consumers, there's a point where no business can absorb it all.
At Common Ground cafe in Hurstville, the story is similar.
"We used to pay $14 a box for spinach, but now it's nearly $40," says owner-chef Harvi Singh. It's a very clear cut example of the tangible cost increases the hospitality industry is facing. That's a huge increase for any business to try and absorb, Singh says: "Where we can, it's the hit we take, but we have to pass on some of the cost somewhere."
But Singh also points out there's a huge focus on making sure there is much less waste wherever possible. It's another way to save on costs without compromising on quality.
At Common Ground, artistic presentation is all part of the experience, but where several boxes of edible flowers were used in a day or two, now one box will have to suffice to keep the aesthetic of the dishes without a cost blow-out.
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"We have to pull back because it's just not available," says Singh, adding a price increase of five to seven per cent isn't too alarming to most customers, but being inside a shopping centre also means he needs to be competitive. "It might be a 50 cent increase on something, but some places are looking at a 20 per cent price increase," he adds – and that's something customers will feel.
Restaurateur, cookbook author and celebrity chef Matt Moran says it's the same story for more high-profile venues like his Aria, Chiswick and Barangaroo House venues, to name a few.
"Yes, when any costs go up, not just produce but staff too, it affects our bottom line straight away," Moran tells 9Honey.
"Right now, restaurants are as busy as they can be, but while customers are back, it's also dictated on the other side by being able to get staff, and then the costs of produce too.
"It's not just fruit and veg, it's across the board with protein like meat and fish. We're not carrying it through so much right now, but moving forward, at some point."
Moran says he and his team look at each individual dish and price it accordingly to make sure it works for the menu.
"You have to be covering your own costs. If you're not, then things are going backwards," says the chef, but he believes customers understand what is happening.
"Everyone understands that they're paying more for iceberg lettuce and a lamb chop. And we understand that if you want to go out and dine, then that's what it is and you have to pay."
Restaurateur and celebrity chef Luke Mangan agrees.
"Cost increases aren't just on one product. It's happening on everything from greens to dairy, meat and fish," says the man behind restaurants including Glass Brasserie and Luke's Kitchen.
"A restaurant has to make a profit to be a sustainable and viable business, so we need to work with the increased costs. But we're mindful not to overprice the menu, it still has to be affordable for diners too."
This makes the menu changes a delicate balancing act, meaning changes where changes can work.
"We won't be putting iceberg lettuce on the menu anytime soon," he jokes.
"But we can look at items on a daily basis, and we can adjust portion sizes and beef dishes up with other items without compromising on quality or flavour."
While our favourite cafes and restaurants are doing their best to soften the blow when it comes to increasing costs of food and produce, there is no question that with current shortages and high prices, there will inevitably be an increase in the cost of our favourite items on the menu.
It's simple business; if the restaurant is paying more for their chicken, the customer simply has to at some point as well, otherwise there won't be any cafes or restaurants to dine at.
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