Trying to add a payment method? You can do this on the 
QuickTake:
Local dining establishments continue to experience financial pressure due to the ongoing increase in egg prices, as well as future increases anticipated for other ingredients. Some managers are waiting for the market to stabilize while others are adapting their menus.
Eugene and Springfield restaurants are continuing to feel the squeeze of egg prices and their upward climb. Breakfast spots and bakeries that use a lot of eggs are particularly vulnerable.
Local restaurants like Morning Glory Café in Eugene have continued serving egg dishes but had to absorb higher costs. Some national diners, including Denny’s and Waffle House, are charging a per-egg surcharge.
Addi Farnsworth, owner of Addi’s Diner in Springfield, says her price for eggs has tripled in recent months.
“We currently have a surcharge of 50 cents each to cover the costs because these are costs that small businesses like mine can’t absorb,” she said. “We are weathering the storm and adapting like we did during COVID times.”
Farnsworth added the surcharge in mid-February. She said the charge frustrates customers, but they are “very understanding” of the situation.
At Morning Glory Café, kitchen manager Joe Hawkey said the restaurant is striving to keep prices reasonable.
“We’re trying not to raise our prices, but we’re definitely trying to find creative ways to bring in different sources of revenue so we don’t have to put the cost back on the consumer, because the cost of everything is going up,” Hawkey said. “We try to be a place you can take your family out to eat and not break the bank.”
Other sources of revenue besides raising prices, for instance, might include a small charge for a to-go box.
The restaurant maintained stability in egg pricing by primarily sourcing organic eggs from a local farm, Upside Down Eggs in Coos Bay, which hasn’t been affected by bird flu outbreaks. On the occasions they may have to supplement by purchasing from a local source, such as The Chef Store, Hawkey said he observed what used to cost $43 a case surging to $150.
“Eggs are a staple of our business so we might have to raise prices eventually,” Hawkey said. “But we’re hoping to see the market stabilize in the next few months before we make a call like that.”
“Pulling levers” to adjust pricing and menus
Jessica Blaine is CEO of Marche Restaurant Group, which operates five eateries between the 5th Street Public Market area and South Eugene. Even with consolidated buying power, it feels the pinch.
Blaine said the restaurant group closely monitors food costs and tries to respond accordingly.
“We are constantly watching prices of all of our ingredients,” she said. “There’s pressure from all directions. Egg prices are going up, OK. How are we going to shift the menu mix so that those costs are absorbed somewhere else? We are careful about structuring our menus in a way that we’re not leaning too hard on ingredients that have really volatile pricing.”
Blaine painted a picture of restaurants “pulling different levers and moving things around” to create menus that allow the restaurant to stay true to their identity at a price customers are comfortable paying.
“You want your customers to feel like it makes sense and at the same time, keep the doors open and keep everybody paid,” she said.
Trisha Temby took over Park Street Cafe in downtown Eugene in early March. For now, she and her niece, Tessie O’Brien, who is helping her, haven’t had much time to think about the price of eggs or other foods.
They have, however, modified some dishes to be served with two eggs instead of three, which Temby says was a smart move based on observing the amount of uneaten food.
“We’re judging the appropriate portion to keep waste from happening and also fill the plate so people still feel they are getting their money’s worth,” she said.
Temby said egg prices seem to be going down a bit. Through their distributor, they are currently paying $100 per case of 15 dozen eggs (180 eggs) down from a high of $120 per case.
Surcharges beyond the breakfast menu?
The situation raises questions about how rising food costs might affect other staples. Items such as avocados and orange juice are also soaring in price due to disease, extreme weather, and global supply chain issues.
With external factors increasing the price of ingredients, could restaurants add fees for other ingredients such as avocados or orange juice?
Temby said she wasn’t likely to charge extra for individual ingredients. She was, however, starting to work with a consultant to help figure out realistic pricing.
Lilith Karrick, who has worked at Park Street Cafe for three years, says the political climate along with tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, is not positive.
“It’s really frustrating,” she said. “It’s dividing the country. It’s bad for our economy. It’s certainly bad for businesses like ours where there are already a lot of pressures. Rents are high and prices are high and customers aren’t spending as much as they used to.”
And now, she said, small businesses like Park Street Cafe will have to make their portions a little smaller and are “probably going to have to raise prices, just to stay afloat and survive it.”
Many restaurants are navigating the same inflationary pressures, forcing them to make difficult decisions about pricing and menu adjustments. However, the challenges go deeper than just the cost of ingredients.
The health of the restaurant industry reflects the overall economic well-being of the community. In times of uncertainty, people are more careful about where they spend their dollars. When people go out to eat less, that has a direct impact on low-margin businesses like local restaurants.
“The service industry has a ton of pressures, and we really need our community support,” Blaine said. “Prices are volatile and that makes restaurants vulnerable, but that also affects the kids making your coffee and the server and the dishwasher and the farmer. For restaurants to survive in the long term, we have to treat them like a local business that needs support.”
