BRYAN, Texas — Inflation has slowed nationally, but Blake Zeitman, the owner of Zeitman's Grocery Store, says he is still spending more money to craft his restaurant's signature sandwiches and bagels.
"It’s definitely been difficult to keep menu items in place and keep them the same price and keep portions the same, but we’re doing the best we can," Zeitman said.
He said the restaurant has been struggling with inflation since the pandemic, dealing with higher prices and supply chain issues.
He's even had to raise the prices of the food he sells, but he says he is trying his best to keep prices reasonable for customers.
"At this point, I’m just going with the flow. So what we do is we try not to skip any corners and making good food at the most reasonable price we can."
President and CEO of the Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce Glen Brewer says inflation levels in the cities aren't nearly as bad as the national level — but prices won't go down anytime soon.
"I think locally, we raised some prices to cover some things," Brewer said.
"While the prices aren’t going down, they’re covering the inflation we’ve got right now."
Zeitman says he never knows which products will go up, but he receives letters in the mail about increasing prices.
He just got a letter from PepsiCo stating the price of their soda products like Dr. Pepper, Diet Dr. Pepper, 7Up, Crush, Schweppes and Big Red will increase.
Brewer says inflation will get better — he just doesn't know when.
"Just looking at the local science, it continues to work itself out," Brewer said.
In the meantime, Brewer advises local businesses to appropriately price their items to stave off inflation and help out customers.