Phillis Engelbert is the owner of
The Lunch Room LLC, which operates
The Lunch Room Diner & Canteen,
The Lunch Room Bakery & Cafe, and
Detroit Street Filling Station in Ann
Arbor, Mich. Contrary to the position
of many restaurant operators, Engelbert
supports a higher minimum wage, and
places employee compensation high on
her list of priorities for the business.
Jill Weber is the owner of three
restaurants in Philadelphia:
Jet Wine Bar, Rex 1516, and
Cafe Ynez, and she has been
outspoken in her opposition to
the new tariffs that are being
levied on certain food products
imported from Europe.
Danea Horn, who founded the plant-
based Burger Patch restaurant in
Sacramento, Calif., along with her
husband, Philip Horn, is seeking to shift
the gender equation in the restaurant
industry. The Horns last year launched
an initiative called #GrilPower, through
which they are asking restaurant
operators to commit to hiring women to
fill half of their back-of-the-house and
management jobs by the end of this year.
Wages, Tariffs, Gender
Equality: Restaurant Operators
Speak Out on Industry Issues
BY MARK HAMSTRA
24 SPECIALTY FOOD SPECIALTYFOOD.COM 24 SPECIALTY FOOD SPECIALTYFOOD.COM
Q&A
T
he restaurant industry is under relentless pressure not only from competition, but also due to regulatory
changes such as minimum wage increases and new tariffs on imported foods, and pressure to re-examine
work environments in the wake of the #MeToo movement and several high-profile cases of workplace
discrimination and harassment.
Specialty Food spoke with three restaurant owners about how they are coping with these challenges.
PHOTO: TOM HUYNH
