Well here we are heading into August 2022. Inflation is reaching record highs, prices for goods and services are going through the roof, the cost of living is going up, but I certainly see no rise in my paycheck!

It seems we managed to get through the COVID lockdowns unscathed health-wise, but now we are paying the price for our worldwide government’s bumbling ways. Our economy is fucked. Our supply chains are fucked. Don’t even get me started on air-travel!

It seems every industry is looking for workers, but somehow there isn’t anyone available to work and I don’t see the shit-show ending anytime soon.

That trickles down, right to the heart of BHON! Let’s talk about the state of the beer and wing world for a minute...

This editorial is not a condemnation of any place in particular. More an overview of a trend we are seeing across the board lately.

Over the last few months, we’ve been trying to get back into our old routine of patronizing our regular establishments while occasionally throwing a new spot into the rotation. Sadly, the after-effects of the pandemic are still widely evident in the restaurant and food-service industry.

First off - while many of our favourite bars managed to make it through the pandemic, they did so at a great cost. Many lost most, if not all of their serving and kitchen staff, leaving them to rebuild in an industry where those willing to work are in short supply. Add in the higher food costs and overhead and we are finding many places struggling to fill seats.

Prices are up, portion sizes have gone down, service levels have deteriorated and food quality has suffered at MANY places we’ve been to post-covid. The scrawny, overpriced wings we’ve been experiencing are evidence of cost-cutting while overcooked and drowned in sauce wings are evidence of inexperienced staff in the kitchen. Despite our desire to support all of our local pubs, these experiences make us less likely to want to return anytime soon.

Second - although we would like to expand our repertoire and check out some new spots, there seems to be only a shrinking pool of places to go. Of course nobody in their right mind would choose to open a restaurant in the middle of the pandemic, but even the list of established businesses going up for sale recently points to an industry in a state of decline. The chances of picking a new spot out of the blue and having it suck are particularly high.

So what’s the solution? What can we do to reverse this trend?

Well I can’t claim to have any experience running a food-service establishment, but from a long-time patron - here’s what we at BHON have come to appreciate:

Wings: - go for quality over quantity. Buy the good stuff. Even if we have to pay a little more, we want the big, plump, juicy wings, not the scrawny leftovers.

Preparation: - it’s not rocket science to toss wings in a deep fryer, but please use fresh oil and cook them right. The perfect wing should have a crisp skin but still be juicy inside, without visible blood!

Staff: - if you have a particularly good server/bartender/cook, do what you can to try and keep them around. Anyone who takes pride in their job is an asset who’s attitude trickles down to the patrons. We can tell when the overcooked wings come out, slopped in sauce were prepared by kitchen staff that didn’t give a fuck. Even more-so when they are tossed on the table by a server who also doesn’t give a fuck. Maybe this is more an indictment of the available workforce these days than anything else?

In the end, all we really want is a night out with our friends in a familiar fun environment. We want to enjoy our colleagues company and feel the energy of those around us who are indulging in the same. A few cold beers and a few hot wings and a little decadence we don’t tend to prepare for ourselves at home. And at the end of the evening, at a cost that was not unaffordable.

Finally, we would like for ALL of our favourite establishments to thrive and survive. It would be great to be able to walk into ANY restaurant and be able to expect a certain level of quality and not have it be a roll of the dice as to whether it will suck.

Can we really get back to that point?

I sure hope so!

On the bright side, there are a few spots that have managed to buck this downhill trend and have still managed to provide the same level of greatness they had pre-covid. We think they know who they are....

MG - July 2022.