Evening star., 1946-09-19

Meat Price RoIIback |
On Restaurant Menus |
oPA food price officials and res
taurant and hotel association rep
resentatives reported that mo new
decision resulted today from long
conference at which the industry
spokesmen tried to obtain at least
an easing Of the rollback of meat
menu prices.
Following long session with C.
Dean McNeal, director of OPAs
food price division, George LIE
Savage, chairman of the restau-
rant industry advisory committee,
and John L. Hennessy, head of the
American Hotel Associations food
committee, indicated they would
carry their protest directly to Price
Administrator Paul Porter.
No further meetings were planned
by Mr.. McNeal, his Office reported.
A spokesman for Mr.. Porter said
the Administrator does not 'live
behind any iron curtain and would
be available for a conference if re-
quired. No appointment has been
asked as yet, the spokesman said
OPA's rollback order ran into an
angry barrage of criticism by indi-
vidual proprietors who called it ri
diculous, drastic, meddling, disrimi-
natory and a body blow to people
who have to eat out. 1t also was
termed "nonsensical and un-Amer-
lean" by Senator Capehart, Repub-
lican, of Indiana, who accused OPA
OF having acted without adequate
study.
Central Control Asked.
Representative Jenkins, chairman
of the Republican Food Study Com
mittee, demanded that President
Truman relieve himself of the
domination of incompetent bureau
Gratis and put all food activities
under one competent head" in the
agriculture department..
Owners or managers of local eat
ing places. ranging from cafeterias
to hotel dining rooms and cover
charge establishments with enter
tainment, disclosed in a cross-sec
tion survey, however, that not all {
expect to be affected in the same ,
way or to the same extent. A few
do not believe they will experience
further cuts in profits.
Such varied concerns as Cannons |
Steak House and the downtown
Ewart's Cafeteria reported they did ]
not raise their meat prices after '
the temporary lapse of OPA last ]
June. Their main problem is to get
meat in the current scarcity. {
ODonnell's Sea Grill was one of
several large restaurants which do1 {
not believe meat will disappear from
the menus. A spokesman said, "Of
course, We'll lose money but We in S
tend to sell all the meat we can :
get" I
Strike" Threat Discounted.
There is little likelihood of such
an organized shut down, in the l
opinion of representative restaurant
men. But there is serious posi-
bility that some restaurants will be
forced to close because they have
been operating on a narrow profit S
margin and could not absorb losses |
certain to result from the rollbacks, (
it was claimed. t
The Hot Shoppes, for example, do t
not anticipate any closings but an T
official declared that some of the
units in that chain will be "prac- j
tically at the zero mark" in the +
profit picture if the rollback remains :
in effect.
The rollback order is drastic and
in the opinion of Govern
nent Services, Inc, which operates
~ Government building cafeterias
The meat lunch, which has cost
30 and IS cents since June 80, viii
go back to Is cents, without bever-
age, an official announced. This will
mean considerable operating
loss" and the overall loss will not
be made UP by the somewhat higher
charges which became possible by
earlier decontrolling of various
other foods. The principal vege-
table luncheon will remain at 80
cents, with beverage, and has been
unchanged in price since 1912, he
said.
An Olmstead Restaurant spokes-
man described the rollback as "ri-
diculous and unfair" Poultry and
vegetable menu items may have to
be raised, but they can't be in
creased very much because the pub
lie wouldn't take It," she said.
Meat Decontrol Urged.
The S. g. w. Cafeteria manager
declared the ideal solution would be
to decontrol meat. He said his
company has cut back the meat
item prices to June 80 ceilings and
that, though the drop in indi-
vidual instances was S and 10 cents,
the total decrease has already
amounted to the equivalent of a
per cent increase above normal in
the cafeteria's food costs.
He predicted, however, that some
solution will be found for this situa-
ton because it cannot continue in
definitely. But he added he was
not optimistic enough to believe
that OPA would revoke its edict
The manager of large downtown .
restaurant said he had heard plenty
of criticism of the OPA boys who do
this because they want to keep their
inlac hut bo q Leo nritinizad sicnr,na of |