Ohio's Restaurant Industry Is In Jeopardy, Here's Why

OHIO — It could be a dire winter for Ohio's restaurants.

During a dour event on Wednesday, the Ohio Restaurant Association (ORA) announced that many of its members believe they'll lose money this year while facing decreased business, staffing shortages and supply chain issues.

The state restaurant association announced that its members need help setting up expanded outdoor dining to survive the winter and are calling on lawmakers to replenish the Restaurant Revitalization Fund.

“Since the onset of the pandemic, restaurants have adapted to changes in consumer behavior and business trends,” said ORA President and CEO John Barker. “From fulfilling more to-go orders to offering cocktails to-go in some locations and of course expanding capacity through outdoor dining, restaurants have done whatever they could to keep their doors open and serve their communities."

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During the event on Wednesday, the Ohio Restaurant Association revealed the findings of its latest Business Impact Poll and described its results as "startling."

Some of the major talking points from the poll:

• Nearly half of Ohio restaurant owners and managers say their October 2021 sales were lower than their October 2019 sales. In fact, October 2021 may have been the industry's weakest performance in many months.
• Nearly 60 percent of restaurant owners said business conditions are worse now than three months ago.
• The majority of Ohio restaurant owners believe they will lose money this year.

"This is why we need Congress to replenish the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF), especially for the 6,804 eligible restaurants in Ohio still waiting to receive funds through the program," Barker added.

Conditions are likely to worsen for the industry over the next several months. Why? Ohio's winters are famously unforgiving and could cripple the outdoor dining scene, which has been a lifeline for many restaurants in attracting customers still cautious about dining indoors due to the COVID-19 threat. In the poll, a majority of Ohio restaurants said outdoor dining now represents 20 percent or more of their business.

“Restaurants currently rely on outdoor dining to stay open, but the dark chill of winter is coming,” said Barker. “For operators depending on this revenue, every additional day they can extend their outdoor service matters.”

Local lawmakers are being urged to create funds or other ways to support the extension of outdoor dining in their communities, the association said in a statement.

Restaurant owners face other major issues too:

• 86 percent of restaurateurs said they're struggling to find staff and are being forced to limit hours or services due to worker shortages.
• 95 percent of restaurateurs said they've been impacted by supply delays or shortages in recent months, while 75 percent said they've been forced to make menu changes due to supply issues.
• The threat of the delta variant slowed indoor dining at 78 percent of restaurants, according to the ORA poll.