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The restaurant staffing crisis touches a nerve

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote here about the staffing crisis that’s enveloping the restaurant world. It became one of the most-viewed issues of the CulinaryWoman Newsletter in the year since I began writing it.

On Monday, my essay about the same topic appeared online at the Washington Post, featuring Jason Goodenough, the New Orleans chef who closed his restaurant in frustration this past January.

It subsequently was published in Tuesday’s print edition.

Wow, is this a hot subject. So far, there are more than 2,600 comments on my essay, which ranked as the Number One Most Read article in the entire newspaper, until a story about Dr. Anthony Fauci unseated it.

It remains one of the most popular essays in the Opinions section. My piece marked the debut of a new Post effort called Voices Across America. I’m one of the voices that focuses on topics in the Midwest.

If you were watching CNN on Wednesday, you might have seen a quote from Jason.

Along with the notice, I got some spicy (let’s just say) emails from Post readers, disputing the idea that restaurants are not good places to work.

One of them questioned my credentials for writing about the restaurant business and said the guys and gals who worked for him (his phrase) had great camaraderie. I’m sure they do.

The interest in my story just goes to show you that the restaurant workplace issue is something that everyone is talking about, not just in our culinary world. As my mother always said, “Every has to eat” and everyone has an opinion about restaurants.

You got the story first — and your support of CulinaryWoman makes it possible for me to produce this type of journalism. Thank you so much, especially to our paid subscribers and our founding members.

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