The California Restaurant Association (CRA) has initiated a new campaign titled “What The Fork?!” to address the impact of state and local regulations on restaurant costs. The effort began with billboards in Sacramento International Airport’s Terminal B and is supported by targeted social media ads in the Capitol region.
“Forty percent of California restaurants we surveyed reported that they did not make a profit last year,” said Jot Condie, President and CEO of the CRA. “We’ve been ringing alarm bells as iconic restaurants shutter and, still, lawmakers add more burdensome regulations, so it’s time to get the attention of our guests, their voters.”
The campaign aims to raise awareness among voters about how increasing regulations affect neighborhood restaurants. “Our ‘What The Fork!’ campaign will raise voter awareness to pressure lawmakers to stop legislating all of us into a hole,” Condie stated.
Many small restaurants continue to pay off loans from pandemic-related closures while also facing rising costs for essentials such as rent, food, utilities, insurance, and labor. According to the CRA, over 400,000 regulations at various government levels contribute directly or indirectly to these financial challenges.
Fred Glick, Incoming Chair of the CRA Board and Brewpub Chieftain at Karl Strauss Brewing Company, said: “This isn’t an exaggeration; neighborhood restaurants are at the brink. Voters deserve to know that the high prices we are all paying are a result of California lawmakers incessantly adding more unnecessary hoops and added costs.”
Dolores C. Jackson, CRA board member and part of Lolita’s Mexican Food family ownership in San Diego, added: “We aren’t big corporations that can absorb added costs; every time they pass another unnecessary rule, lawmakers are eating into the 3-5 cents that small neighborhood restaurants are making on the dollar.”
The CRA emphasizes that restaurant closures have broader effects on communities since these businesses contribute significantly to public safety funding, schools, and infrastructure. The association encourages residents to learn more about policies affecting prices and participate by signing a petition at https://www.calrest.org/wtf.
