Restaurateurs expect growth, hiring in the next six months

TORONTO—The summer’s looking up for restaurant owners, according to the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association.


Almost 40 per cent of owners surveyed in the group’s recently released restaurant outlook expect sales to pick up over the next six months, and a quarter of restaurateurs are planning to hire more employees to meet this boom (a rise from the 12 per cent that were planning to hire at this time last year.)


The first quarter of the year was slow, with average restaurant same-store sales rising by  0.6 per cent.


Respondents said that their top two challenges are rising food prices (identified by 71 per cent of respondents) and growing labour costs (cited by 60 per cent). Rising liquor and gas prices are also taking a toll on business, say restaurateurs.