Cafes smashed by soaring avo costs
THE devotion of health freaks is being tested with the price of avocadoes soaring to an all-time high.
The Coast’s best restaurants and cafes say they are paying $89 for a tray of the green gold, more than triple the $24 they were shelling out less than two years ago.
Prices have skyrocketed at the supermarket too, with shoppers forced to cough up $6 each for the stone fruit.
Some restaurants have been forced to use avo-pea mixtures to ensure taste and quality.
However, the restaurants say there is one frontier they won’t go – using avo from a tube.
Jensen’s Market Supplies owner Kellie Jensen, who supplies avos to noted restaurants such as Bam Bam Bakehouse, Paddock Bakery, Blackboard Coffee and Spendelove, said mother nature was to blame for the price hike.
“We’re right at the end of the Hass (avocado) season and we’re crossing over into Shepard, and that’s where the supply has fallen short, the seasonal gap between those varieties,” she said. “The early Shepards are never great to start with and they need to be handled correctly.
“I’d say there’s still going to be a number of weeks until the high prices recede and the quality is right.”
Raw Espresso Southport has been one cafe forced to temporarily remove avocentric dishes from its menu.
“When (customers) get to the counter and see the ‘sorry, no avocado’ sign they’re speechless,” barista Benjamin Sneddon said.
“They understand it’s not our fault but people are so attached to their avocado, they feel a little lost without it.
“But I say to them, ‘look on the bright side, at least you’ll be able to afford a house now’!”
Other cafes such as Double Barrel Espresso at Mermaid Waters said they refused to pass on the inflated price to customers, even though the cost of a tray of avocadoes has soared from $24 to $89 in less than two years.
“We’re just dip in profit,” Winters said.
Bam Bam Bakehouse owner Ursula Watts said: “Unfortunately this time of year avocados are expensive and we have to absorb the price of them rather than pass on to our customers.
“It’s the right thing to do and it’s why our locals keep coming back.” copping owner the Jess