"Let somebody do the cooking": Families pivot from Thanksgiving traditions due to inflation
SACRAMENTO — This Thanksgiving, people will find an uninvited guest at the table: inflation.
Shortages and high prices are putting families in a difficult spot with some deciding if it's cheaper to dine out than to prepare a spread at home.
It is impossible to miss the stubbornly high inflation at grocery stores.
"Everything has gone up so much," said Joseph Garcia of Sacramento.
Even where shoppers can score good deals, it is clear people are pivoting from traditions yet again.
"I've seen a few of them look for the 12, maybe the 10-12-pound bird," said Wilson Nunn Jr, the store director of Rancho San Miguel.
The store told CBS13 staple ingredients like lettuce, butter and eggs remain high.
Still, prices aren't stopping people from spending time with family and friends.
"Oh, I'm definitely going over to eat," said Justin Temple of Oak Park. "I'm definitely going to be eating."
It may be a question of either whose house or which restaurant?
"It's not necessarily inflation-driven. Part of it is – I've seen a growing trend of it over the years where families get together and they're living in smaller spaces and so it's too crowded to actually cook at home," said Tory Paski, founder of Hoppy Brewing Company.
Since opening in 1999, the restaurant said it has always offered a Thanksgiving spread.
Though, the new demand for dining out mixed in with the labor shortage and respiratory viruses is not an ideal recipe.
But Paski believes his restaurant will be ready.
"Let somebody do the cooking," he said. "Let somebody do the cleaning. It's a whole lot easier for the family so they can socialize and not stress over the cooking and cleaning."
