Area restaurants dependent on the Gulf Coast for seafood are feeling the pinch from oyster and shrimp shortages.
But others, whose suppliers are based elsewhere, have yet to be affected by the April 20 explosion of a BP offshore oil-drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico and the resulting damaging oil spill.
“We can”t get Gulf shrimp right now at a good price, so we can”t resell them,” said James Fish Market owner James Basson, noting supplies of live oysters to the market, located at 1302 Military Road in Columbus, ceased about two weeks ago.
“We sell mostly catfish,” he added, explaining he also no longer buys and sells shrimp. “As far as Gulf shrimp go, you can get them, but they”re expensive. I can”t resell them and make any money on them.”
“Of course, we are (affected by the shortages),” Table of Plenty owner Marty Wages said Wednesday.
Oyster and shrimp po”boy sandwiches are specialties of the restaurant, which is located at 1001 Military Road.
But Wages” supply of oysters only carried him through Thursday, and he has yet to reorder more.
“I”ve been greatly affected by (the oil spill), he explained. “I”m getting some East Coast (oysters), but the prices have gone up significantly.”
Wages likely will reorder oysters Monday or Tuesday, but he”s waiting to see how prices change.
“Every time they close (contaminated oyster) beds, the prices go up,” he said, adding he bought 20 cases of shrimp before the oil rig explosion and eventually will get more from the coasts of Texas and the Carolinas.
“People really love my oyster and shrimp po”boys, so to say we haven”t been affected isn”t true,” he added, emphasizing the restaurant still serves catfish po”boy sandwiches.
“We have not really felt the effect,” said Bobby Martin, the kitchen manager and a chef at Harvey”s in Columbus. “(But) I have a feeling that is certainly still to come. One food vendor is on the Mississippi coast, and I was speaking with him about it over the weekend. The stuff I”ve been getting has looked beautiful. He expects in the next four weeks or so, it”s going to get tighter and tighter and tighter. He felt there were certainly some hard times still to come.”
Manager Pam Campbell said Gulf Coast shortages haven”t hurt The Veranda restaurant, in Starkville.
“We”re not (affected) yet, at all,” she said, noting the restaurant serves oysters as a special and shrimp regularly. “We don”t get anything from the Gulf. We get oysters from up north.”
And Caney Fork, a restaurant in Columbus serving shrimp, but not oysters, also remains unaffected.
“Right now, our supplier has not raised our prices and we haven”t experienced a price increase at this time,” said General Manager Steven Baucom.
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