Getting eggs for an at-home breakfast has become a pain. Due to bird flu, there’s an ongoing shortage, meaning prices are reaching new highs, and restaurants in Bloomington-Normal are feeling the effects — in some cases, to an even greater degree than individuals.
At Shannon’s Five Star in southeast Bloomington, customers often come for the eggs — in an omelet, scrambled, sunny side up, the list goes on. Managing Partner Jack Patterson said the restaurant goes through around 300 dozen eggs per week.
“I've had a switch from getting my eggs from my provider — our food delivery trucks — to going, you know, almost practically every day, to the stores around town to get eggs,” he said.
He loads up his personal vehicle with all the eggs he can get. Most often, Patterson said he goes to Sam’s Club and Walmart, where eggs tend to be around $4.50 per dozen — nearly half of what his provider is asking.
It’s more legwork, Patterson said, but the pay-off is undeniable.
Still, Patterson said it’s not “feasible for long-term.”
“There's been times in the past few weeks where I'll go out to say, Sam’s or Walmart, and they're out of stock, or they're putting limits on them,” he said.
TJ Shabah, the manager at Garden of Paradise, said he’s been continuing to buy eggs from providers, despite increases of four or five times what he typically would pay outside the shortage. Garden of Paradise is on Empire Street near Eastland Mall.
One of Shabah’s providers recommended he take Patterson’s route and get eggs directly from grocers, but Shabah said he doesn’t follow that logic.
“Price should be the same everywhere,” Shabah said. “Why [is it] this store is cheaper than everybody else?”
Both Shabah and Jack Patterson at Shannon's Five Star say raising menu prices is a last resort, as they don’t want to burden customers with making up costs. However, there aren’t many alternatives.
Save two options, which are practically taboo among breakfast-dealing restaurants: liquid and powdered eggs. When asked if he had considered either option, Shabah said “that’s something I do not mess with.”
Patterson said — somewhat timidly — that he’s resorted to using a mix of 50:50 liquid eggs and regular eggs for the buffet scrambled eggs — but there are limits to how far he’ll go. Powdered? A hard no.
Keller’s Iron Skillet in South Bloomington has been continuing to use regular eggs and buy from its provider, according to owner Tim Keller. As of late, eggs have become one of the highest costs for the restaurant.
As a result, Keller said he raised menu prices by around $2 in late February.
“It’s affecting business big time,” he said. “A single guy coming in is not going to affect him that much. But if you got five or six in your family, it's going to make a big impact on your bill.”
One of his most popular menu items — black coffee, two eggs and bacon — went from $7 to $9. Keller said his other costs have increased too, such as utilities and bacon. Nothing is cheap anymore, he said.
“This has never, ever happened before,” he said. “You can only do so much.”
Keller said he hears prices are only going to keep climbing and he’s going to keep doing what needs to be done to keep business afloat. He, Patterson and Shabah said they are all hoping for relief.
“Because we don't see any changes coming soon,” Shabah said.
