Local owner wonders what’s in store for the restaurant industry in 2022

The current year is ending with more uncertainty for the restaurant industry in Canada and other countries amid the latest wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association used a posting on its Facebook site today to acknowledge every owner, restaurant employee, supplier and restaurant guest for their “agility, passion, loyalty and innovation” in 2021 that has helped the industry recover during another year of the pandemic.

“We have still a road to travel but maybe not as long as the first journey we started 22 months ago,” the association said on the site.

As 2021 closes, restaurants in Canada are once again being forced to change plans or shut their doors due to the rapidly-spreading Omicron variant which is setting daily case records, causing a return of public health measures.

Katie Dahl, vice president of the Dahl Group of Companies in Vernon which owns three restaurants and a catering business, wonders what the new year will bring for restaurant owners and the huge number of employees in the sector.

“Certain parts of Canada will be hit hard,” said Dahl. “Look at downtown Vancouver, which relies on conventions, for example. I assume they are cancelled or delayed. This makes it hard on the hospitality business for sure. If our neighbor, the Fairfield Hotel is empty, that hurts us big time.”

Eateries, bars and event venues are facing restrictions, from capacity limits to rules barring dancing and moving from table to table. Many restaurateurs are now grappling with cancelled reservations or refunding tickets as Omicron decimates the festive plans of Canadians that just weeks ago appeared a safe bet.

Dahl had to chuckle when she read the following quote from Brenda O’Reilly, owner of four restaurants in Newfoundland and Labrador when she commented on issues facing the industry.

“Our overhead is going up; wages are accelerating, food prices are accelerating,” O’Reilly said. “The only thing that’s not going up for us is our revenue.”

Both Dahl and O’Reilly have big operations on different ends of the country but share the same concern of how the industry will survive the coming year amid ongoing restrictions and rising inflation.

Dahl said all restaurant owners must feel the same, and she poses this question: What is the viability of the sector in the coming year?

“It’s really challenging and stressful at times,” Dahl remarked.

Dahl said she and her large team of professionals are committed to being the best.

“It is no secret that the best moments in life include people, food and wine,” said Dahl. “The Dahl Group did not make this up. Our goal is to simply be the best at it, and those operators that are committed to serving their guests with a smile, they will grow revenue.”

The Dahl Group (formerly Pretium) owns The Italian Kitchen, Wings Vernon, Top Choice Pizza and Vernon Catering and Hospitality.