New report finds 56 per cent of Ottawa restaurants in 'dire straits' from rising costs

Tropikal opened this year on Clarence Street in Ottawa on Nov. 3, 2023 (Katelyn Wilson/CTV News).

Restaurants across the country and in Ottawa are struggling to adjust to a post-pandemic world.

A new report from Restaurants Canada shows although customer spending is up ten per cent from last year, 50 per cent of restaurants are in dire straits and at risk of going under.

In Ottawa, that number is closer to 56 per cent.

“The reality is that yes, numbers are up in terms of revenue to the industry, but if you adjust that with inflation we are down to pre-pandemic levels,” said Richard Alexander, executive vice president of government relations and public affairs with Restaurants Canada.

Etienne Dupuy, the manager of Tropikal on Clarence Street, says wage increases combined with higher inflation and less people eating out is not a recipe for success.

“We’re really trying to serve as much as we can and cutting expenses as much as we can, but really there is only so much that can be done,” said Dupuy.

Data so far this year shows more than double the number of bankruptcies compared to last year.

A survey also found that 69 per cent of Canadians say they’re not dinning out as much because prices are taking a bite out of their appetite.

“The sticker prices everyone sees when they go to the grocery store in terms of rising costs of things you’re purchasing there, well, we see those things ten fold here,” said Sarah Chown, Ottawa chair of the Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association.

In recent weeks at least two restaurants in Gatineau closed their doors.

Brasseurs Du Temps, a 15-year fixture in the area and British Pub whose owner took to social media, said the decision was because of, “changing economic times, higher inflation and rising interest rates.”

With the deadline looming to pay back federal loans taken out to survive the pandemic, industry leaders say that without an extension, more restaurants will have no choice but to close for good.