Keys Cafe adds temporary 50-cent egg surcharge as costs skyrocket

Keys Cafe and Bakery restaurants added a temporary 50-cent surcharge for each egg this week due to the surging cost of eggs nationwide.

Chad Selton, a manager at the Keys Cafe in downtown Minneapolis, said his location of the local chain was the last to implement the surcharge, adding that he tried to hold out as long as possible. Restaurants traditionally operate under very thin profit margins.

"We're already struggling for business, and the last thing I want to do is add more costs onto it all, until I absolutely have to," he said. "Things are just getting hard, and we were having to absorb [the costs]."

[More: With egg prices soaring, how to find affordable cartons or alternatives]

An ongoing bird flu outbreak in the United States has contributed to the soaring egg costs. When a chicken tests positive for a virus that causes bird flu, oftentimes the entire flock has to be killed to prevent it from spreading.

Previous bird flu outbreak-related price spikes occurred in 2015 and 2022.

In the Midwest, wholesale prices of large white eggs have risen to $8.42 per dozen, according to a Feb. 25 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Shoppers around the Twin Cities were already noticing the price increases at the end of January, and some grocery stores have posted signs limiting purchases.

It's unclear when the surging costs will subside, but U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins suggested that Americans could consider raising their own chickens for eggs.

"People are sort of looking around thinking, 'Wow, well maybe I can get a chicken in my backyard,' and it's awesome," Rollins said in a recent interview.

At Keys Cafe, Selton said he hasn't heard of any signs of the cost going down anytime soon.

Henhouse Eatery, also in downtown Minneapolis, has not implemented a surcharge and is instead absorbing the added cost it has to pay for eggs, owner Tara Koenig said in an email.

"We have not implemented a surcharge or increased menu prices, as we are hopeful that the current egg prices will stabilize," she said.

Others have raised prices. At Lynde's Restaurant and Catering in Osseo, management added a 35-cent egg surcharge last month. Mark Lynde, owner of Lynde's Restaurant and Catering, said in the last few months the cost per egg has risen from 20 cents to 30 cents. Prices then skyrocketed again, climbing to 65 cents per egg.

Considering they go through about 8,100 eggs per week, the restaurant was facing an additional $12,000 in costs per month, Lynde said.

"We just couldn't do it anymore, it was devastating, so we put a temporary surcharge on eggs," Lynde said.

He said customers have been understanding of the restaurant's need for the surcharge.

Papa's Cafe in New Hope implemented a $1 surcharge per egg, which manager Becky Lien said factored into the new costs of egg dishes such as omelets.

"We didn't want to [add it]," she said. "Most of our customers have been understanding about it.