This program originally aired June 22
Restaurants were among the businesses hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic. For more than a year, they faced onerous restrictions on capacity and had to be inventive in order to survive, finding new ways to attract customers and feeding them while keeping dining rooms closed.
Many didn’t make it. But for those that did, new challenges have arisen as the economy begins to open up. The pandemic shuffled the economic deck, resulting in a labor shortage in that industry and workers who want more money. The supply chain was also disrupted and is just now beginning to sort itself out.
We hear about survival and the state of today’s restaurant scene.
GUESTS
Cristina Bolling, managing editor of The Charlotte Ledger (@CristinaBolling)
Kathleen Purvis, food and travel writer, formerly with The Charlotte Observer (@kathleenpurvis)
Greg Collier, James Beard award-nominated chef, co-founder of BayHaven Restaurant Group, and owner/operator of Leah & Louise in Camp North End (@perfecttn10)
Patrick Whalen, owner and CEO of the 5th Street Group, which owns a number of restaurants in Charlotte, including 5Church, La Belle Helene, and Sophia’s Lounge (@PatrickWhalenNC)
