Onion rings and fries will be tight this year, according to Portillo’s Inc. Chief Executive Officer Michael Osanloo—another challenge for restaurant operators that are grappling with high food and labor costs.
The limited supply is largely due to a bad crop year for the onions that are used for the fried appetizers. The cost and availability of French fries are also a concern, Osanloo said in an interview in Chicago, adding that prices for the two items have gone up dramatically.
While inflation-rate increases are slowing compared with 2022, food expenses are still a top area of concern for restaurants this year. The industry has been steadily raising prices in spite of tighter family budgets, economic uncertainty and a decline in consumer sentiment. “I’m nervous about onion rings,” Osanloo said. “There’s a certain type of onion that makes onion rings really good and apparently 2022 was a really bad year for these crops.” He added that frying oil has also gotten more expensive.
Osanloo predicted that commodity costs would be up in the mid-to-high-single digits in 2023 and further price increases are coming for diners, after the Oak Brook, Illinois-based company raised prices by about 8 percent last year. Portillo’s favors using multiple smaller increases instead of brusque jumps, Osanloo said. Chief Financial Officer Michelle Hook said earlier this month the company would raise prices by about 2 percent in mid-January.
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