BusinessReport.com

When the price of rice more than doubled, Opie’s Cajun Café Owner Brian “Opie” Medlin says they chose to make every grain count rather than to raise prices again.

Medlin’s Government Street restaurant uses hundreds of pounds of rice, so a 25-pound box that once cost $7 but now costs $16 adds up quickly. And the pain isn’t over yet. Medlin expects the price to nearly triple by the end of the year.

“Now that fuel is pushing everything higher and higher, we’re constantly reevaluating our prices, but there won’t be a substantial increase yet,” he says. “As a business owner, the last thing I want to do is raise prices. You have to manage your money better, which is the true test of a restaurant.”

Like other restaurateurs, Medlin is focusing more on the customer with quality food and service, consistency and value in hopes of retaining their business as they eat out less. Last month, the consumer research company Mintel released results of a national poll conducted in January that showed 54% of people who dine out regularly reported they are cutting back because of the economy.

Medlin hopes summer sales will be healthier as more people consider staying home to avoid rising fuel costs—but everyone agrees inflation and gas prices are taking their toll on restaurants and their customers.

“We’re still holding to previous year sales with no decline,” says Don’s Seafood and Steak House Co-Owner Duke Landry, who has increased his advertising to attract customers to his longtime Airline Highway restaurant. “We’re fighting a little harder for it, but people are still coming out to eat. We know people have so much to spend, and we think we’re giving the best value for their money with the full sit-down service.”

Hello Sushi Co-Owner Angela Finch says she has resisted increasing menu prices despite fuel surcharges on everything from linen service to seafood deliveries. Finch says her two locations, Burbank Drive just east of Nicholson Drive and Highland Road just east of Interstate 10, are focusing on efficiencies such as as-needed ordering and phasing out lesser-selling items.

“We’re not doing any extras, any promotional things like we used to,” Finch says. “We’re cutting back where we can by letting people go home when it’s slow, but we don’t sacrifice quality. It’s a hard balance. It’s tough, but in Baton Rouge we’re special that we have that little buffer.”

Thanks to corporate bulk buying, Sullivan’s Steakhouse General Manager Leo Verde says prices are not going to increase. Sullivan’s, with its Corporate Boulevard location among 16 nationwide, locks in purchase contracts six months at a time, particularly on beef, and can afford to stockpile supplies at better prices.

“We eat, breathe and sleep the numbers,” Verde says. “The beautiful thing about it is we don’t have to worry about it during the crunch.”

Mestizo Louisiana Mexican Restaurant on Acadian Thruway experienced its best month of the year in May, but owner Jim Urdiales says it also was accompanied by “extraordinarily high costs.”

He says the price of dairy products jumped 20%, which was particularly troubling when so many of his dishes contain cheese. Fuel surcharges have added another $200 a week to delivery costs. But rather than lower food quality and lose staff, Urdiales says he’s serving smaller portions and trimming costs in advertising and utilities.

Although he raised some prices in April, Urdiales says he may have to raise them again soon to survive, but “I’m struggling with pricing myself out of the market.”

Juban’s Creole Restaurant Manager Jimmy Ward says rising wine prices has the Perkins Road restaurant shopping for more labels that meet their customers’ price point and palete in addition to maintaining a prized wine list.

“We’re seeing more right below $100 instead of right above it,” Ward says, suggesting people have become more cautious in purchasing wine.

That isn’t a problem, since wine drinkers are considered more adaptable to different brands than people who prefer, for example, Jack Daniels to other whiskeys or Grey Goose to other vodkas.

And that’s a good thing, especially since Ward says the Lafite Rothschild has shot up from $1,500 per bottle to more than $2,500. That means the beloved Bordeaux might be staying closer to home, too—at least for now.

WHAT’S ON THE MENU?

Comparing the price of food and drinks at Baton Rouge restaurants from 2007 to 2008:

Soft drink

What: Glass of Coca-Cola

2007: $2

2008: $2.25

Cocktail

What: 2.25-ounce serving of Crown Royal

2007: $8.50

2008: $9

Wine

What: Bottle of Pine Ridge “Rutherford” cabernet

2007: $96

2008: $136

Appetizer

What: Cup of seafood gumbo

2007: $4

2008: $5

Entrées

What: Red beans and rice

2007: $5.50

2008: $5.99

What: Steak fajita burrito

2007: $12

2008: $13

What: Broiled fish topped with lump crabmeat

2007: $18.95

2008: $22.95

What: Ribeye

2007: $32.95

2008: $34.95

Dessert

What: Cheesecake

2007: $3.95

2008: $4.25