Recent Inflation Impacts on the Restaurant Industry, what are the solutions?

Abstract

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses all around the globe have struggled and are still struggling to recover from the damage it caused. Restaurants specifically have struggled to retain customers and employees and stay afloat. Restaurants are also struggling to maintain menu prices at a decent level, while inflation caused and still causes food costs and operating costs to skyrocket. Since 2020, the restaurant industry has witnessed thousands of closures, loss of customers and employees, and bankruptcy due to increasing prices over the years. The purpose of this industry commentary article is to analyze and examine inflation impacts on restaurants in the United States, covering information such as food cost increases, labor cost increases, menu prices, industry statistics, and consumer spending statistics. In the end, this article will uncover the best strategic practices to keep restaurants safe from bankruptcy, closure, or loss of business in the heat of inflation. Research shows that updating menus, researching better-priced supply vendors, bringing in new technology, and adjusting labor and operations hours have significantly contributed to the recovery of United States restaurants from the impacts of inflation.