PORTLAND, Maine — Portland's restaurant scene is taking a hard hit as more than eight restaurants have closed or announced closures recently.
Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Quincy Hentzel said many business owners have been forced to call it quits.
"You've got inflation that's causing the cost of food, the cost of the cost of goods to go up. Wages are going up," Hentzel said. "In cities like Portland, you have municipal orders like hazard pay. So, when that triggers, wages go up time and a half. That is a really big unplanned expense for restaurants to withtake."
Restaurants like Salvage BBQ and Slab Sicilian Street Food, which both have been open for more than 10 years, are now among the several longtime eateries in the area that have announced closures.
The owner of Salvage BBQ also owns Local 188. Over a phone call, an employee at Local 188 said the location will also soon be closing.
Employees at Slab said the restaurant has been packed with customers since owners announced that Oct. 12 will be their last day serving up slices earlier this week.
Owners of Thistle and Grouse, which closed at the end of September, shared on social media that their decision to close came after being met with continuous remodeling delays and struggles to regroup after being heavily impacted by last winter's storms.
The business was also affected by inflation, owners wrote.
Hentzel said with the current economic climate, it's not surprising to see so many closures.
"I would think all restaurants are looking at at least the hours that they're open. Whether they're going to be open for lunch and dinner. Are they going to be closed for lunch? Are they going to be open only a couple of days a week? Only on the weekend? How much staff do they have to make it all work?" Henzel said. "So, I think even short of the making the decision to close, restaurants are weighing a whole host of options as to how they can make it work over the next few months as we go into the winter."
She explained winter is usually the slow season for businesses, making it harder for them to break even.
Hentzel said as more restaurants close, the city of Portland loses tax revenue, and many jobs are lost. She said she hopes this wave of restaurant closures quickly comes to an end.