Appetite for success

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BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Joe Loschiavo, co-owner of Pasquale's Italian Restaurant on Marion Street, says diversification is one of its secrets to success. (WINNIPEG FREE PRESS) Photo Store

Mom-and-pop restaurants were cooking up a storm last year in Manitoba, even though their counterparts were dropping like flies in other parts of the country, according to the results of a recent industry survey.

The cross-country survey by the NPD Group found while Canada was losing 1,261 independent restaurants in 2011, Manitoba's hyper-competitive restaurant industry was adding 17 more to the 1,344 it already had.

"The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in the restaurant industry in Manitoba," said Linda Strachan, a food service industry analyst with the NPD Group.

Strachan said the stable economy here may have been a factor.

If people are employed and feeling good about the local economic prospects, they tend to dine out more often.

Population growth and the return of an NHL team to Winnipeg also helped, she said.

"When you've got a dynamic market where things are happening, that certainly attracts restaurant chains."

The NPD survey showed Manitoba had a net gain of four new chain restaurants last year. That, combined with the net gain of 17 new independents, boosted the province's total restaurant count to 2,247 from 2,226 in 2010.

While 21 new eateries may not sound like a big deal, it is when Canada is posting a net loss of 1,486 for the same period. In fact, the NPD Group said Manitoba was one of only two provinces -- Alberta was the other -- to see a net increase in restaurants in 2011.

That's a refreshing change, according to Scott Jocelyn, executive director of the Manitoba Restaurant and Foodservices Association.

"That certainly bucks the trend we've been seeing for the last 10 years, where the number of restaurants has kind of been on the decline," Jocelyn said.

Maybe years of competing in one of the most competitive markets in the country has given local operators a chance to further hone their survival skills, Jocelyn said.

The NPD Group survey confirmed what Jocelyn and other local industry players have been saying for years -- Manitoba has more restaurants per capita than any province in Canada.

It found there were 58 restaurants for every 10,000 households in Manitoba in 2011. That compares to 51 in red-hot Alberta and 50 in the country's largest province, Ontario.

Joe Loschiavo, co-owner of one of the city's successful independents -- Pasquale's Italian Restaurant on Marion Street -- knows all too well how challenging the local industry can be.

He and his brother, Sandro, have been operating Pasquale's since 1990 and have survived several economic downturns and the introduction of the federal Goods and Services Tax, which really took a bite out of the business in the early 1990s.

He said one of their secrets to success has been diversification. In addition to its dine-in services, Pasquale's also offers city-wide home delivery and has a thriving catering service.

"You can't wait for the business to come to you," he said. "You have to look at what other avenues there are to get your food out of the public."

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca

Here's a tip for you

TORONTO -- Ontario law should make clear customers leave tips in restaurants and bars to reward the server and other staff, not the owners, Premier Dalton McGuinty said Wednesday.

"Everybody believes if we go to a restaurant and we put down a tip, it is never part of our understanding that's going to go to the owner or management," said McGuinty.

"It's about providing a little bit of extra income to those people who wait on the tables or share with the busboys or whoever. I think that's the implicit understanding we have as consumers, and I think we should have a law that reflects that."

NDP finance critic Michael Prue has been trying to ban owners and managers from taking a percentage of tips since 2010 and has reintroduced a private member's bill to outlaw the practice.

Prue received a lot of media attention and support for his idea on newspaper editorial pages.

-- The Canadian Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 14, 2012 B5