Page 9 - Patrick Cooley News Today

Customers of The Grainery may notice the bar and restaurant’s menu getting more expensive in the coming months. The Plain City staple might have to raise prices as high as 25% to offset rising salaries and commodity costs, said General Manager Andrew Dawson.  “Food prices are skyrocketing,” he said. “It’s a nightmare.” And it’s not just The Grainery. Restaurant patrons can expect bigger checks as the summer approaches and diners throughout Ohio pay more for labor and key ingred...

Patrick Cooley Business groups cheered Gov. Mike DeWine’s decision to lift all coronavirus-related restrictions on restaurants and bars, but some restaurant and bar owners found themselves fretting over whether or not to keep mask rules or social distancing restrictions in place. Customers who aren’t actively eating and drinking are currently required by Ohio law to wear masks, and tables must be spaced at least six feet apart unless they can be separated by a partition. Those requirements...

Ahmed Quaraja, who owns the Columbus food truck Zaki, speaks English, but filing paperwork for small business loans and grants is still a challenge. “I’ve never been to school in the U.S.,” said Quaraja, a Palestinian immigrant. “Some words in the paperwork, I dont know what they mean.” The knowledge gap was especially problematic when Quaraja needed to apply for Paycheck Protection Program loans to keep his business open during the economic crisis brought on by the coronavirus outbre...

Enhanced unemployment benefits blamed by restaurant owners for worker shortage Experts and industry insiders cite a variety or reasons for a general reluctance to return to work, but Hall-Jones put the blame squarely on enhanced unemployment benefits.  "We fought hard to get through COVID, but COVID didnt kill us, the stimulus did," he said. Early in the pandemic, an extra $600 was added to weekly unemployment checks. While that figure is now $300, some workers can still make more staying at h...

This is a common story among Ohio’s servers and bartenders. Tips, shifts disappear as restaurant patrons continue to stay home, switch to carryout More than a year after the first cases of coronavirus were identified in Ohio, patrons are still staying home or switching to carryout, which means less gratuity for front-of-house workers like bartenders and servers, and fewer shifts for back-of-house workers like dishwashers and cooks. Others are still catching up after extended periods of unem...

Urban Chophouse, a joint venture between former Ohio State University football coach Urban Meyer and central Ohio restaurateur Chris Corso, will open next Wednesday (May 12) in the Luxe 23 luxury apartment building. The upscale, Short North steakhouse at 1079 N. High St. marks the second collaboration between Corso and Meyer. The pair previously opened Urban Pint House in Dublins Bridge Park development. The chophouse will sell steaks, sushi, seafood and craft cocktails, and will serve USDA ...

Hot Chicken Takeover This relatively new entry into the Columbus dining scene began its life as a pop-up in 2014, and is quickly becoming the standard-bearer for Nashville-style hot chicken in central Ohio (although a “cold” option is available for those who prefer their fried chicken with less of a kick). The chain has four Columbus area locations, and a restaurant in the Cleveland suburb of Westlake. Menu items range from $8 to $10, although you can buy a whole chicken for $27. The Eagle ...

Customers continued to file into Tee Jayes Country Place at the corner of North High Street and Morse Road late Friday morning, even after the breakfast rush has typically ended. A quaint dining room lined with wood-paneled walls and unpretentious décor had sparse seating thanks to coronavirus restrictions that requires tables to be spaced at least 6 feet apart — a line of chairs in front of a counter at the north end of the dining room was covered in white paper to keep customers from si...

Another round of help is coming for Ohio’s beleaguered restaurants in the form of the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, which industry experts say is sorely needed despite an improving economy and widespread availability of coronavirus vaccinations. Congress created the more than $28 billion fund through the COVID relief package signed into law earlier this spring. The Small Business Administration is distributing the funds to eateries across the nation in the form of grants. Applications op...

The recall affects nearly 100 products sold after March 24. In a news release, the Utica company stressed that no illnesses have been linked to its products. Listeria is often found in unpasteurized milk, uncooked vegetables and some fruits such as cantaloupe. The bacteria can cause listeriosis, which is rare but potentially fatal. Young children, the elderly, and those with compromised immune systems are at heightened risk. The recall marks the third time listeria was discovered at a Velvet fa...