The Cooks Pantry will close this weekend after 16 years, with the owners citing cost-of-living and personal reasons.

For James and Jo Bodroghy, the decision to close and sell The Cooks Pantry was layered.

“I think that’s probably the saddest thing for us too is that it’s a beautiful neighbourhood, and the people, the customers we do have as regulars, are just lovely,” Jo says.

The Cooks Pantry pride themselves on fresh, local produce and make everything in-house including bread. James, as the chef, didn’t want to compromise on this quality, which meant it all became too expensive because of the increased costs of produce.

“It’s a full commitment,” James says. “We don’t really have anyone else that can do my job [as chef] in the kitchen there. So that’s part of the reason I’ve got to this point and thought ‘well, you know, it’s a real push to keep going’.

“There’s only so much your body can take.”

Jo and James say they’ve noticed consumer spending habits have shifted.

“Well, interest rate rises ­– that really affects people’s spending,” James says. “And this is a discretionary spend, like any sort of entertainment, takeaway coffee. So that for sure we noticed.”

James says hospitality has “never been an easy industry to run businesses in”.

“But now, we’re tighter than we’ve ever been,” he says.

“We were doing more on less – we’re doing more output with less staff. We can’t lower the standard of the food, but we’re having to be a lot smarter with the way we buy.

“And that might be a change that you see in the industry, where more product is bought in from bigger factory kitchens or dedicated production kitchens that can do it consistently at a reasonable price.

“Whereas, if I’ve got to make everything here, I either have really efficient chefs, or I’m doing it all myself.”

James Bodroghy

They explain how roadworks taking place on Jetty Street just outside their café also played a part in hitting spending at The Cooks Pantry.

“But then we got the interest rates smash bang straight after that,” Jo says.

“I think everyone’s the same in that people giving up that morning coffee and for us, people also found other places to go because they couldn’t get in down the street when driving on the way to work and stuff like that.”

“We got the double whammy.”

James says he’s even noticed a shift in the types of people coming into The Cooks Pantry, as the “young to middle-aged people with mortgages don’t spend the money anymore”.

“So our crowd would be 30s and 40s back in the day as a majority, and now it’s some very young people and the retirees who don’t have a mortgage. They’re the ones who are spending money,” James says.

He also says “little increases here and there” has also affected his business, like an increase of food costs and “half a percent on your super that you pay on top of your wages”.

“Because the margins are so small, every little thing makes a big difference – doesn’t seem like a lot, but just gradually you get a little bit squeezed,” he says.

“It does feel like there’s just no support for the small business, which is really sad, because we absolutely love small business in every way,” Jo says.

The cycle of the hospitality industry has meant there’s nowhere to put these extra costs.

“Obviously, wages are a huge factor in our industry, but at the same time, we’re in a cost-of-living crisis, and people are struggling,” James says.

“So we have this ceiling on how much we can charge – again, because people don’t have lots of money to spend – and then we have gradual increases every now and then – there’s another per cent or so, or small wage rises – to keep up, which is fair, but we can’t pass that on our sales prices.”

“Well you can, but then you lose trade,” Jo says.

“I don’t know what the solution there is and I know it’s not just our industry,” James says. “Wages aren’t keeping up with cost-of-living. Businesses aren’t keeping up with wages.”

The coffee window at The Cooks Pantry. This picture: supplied.

James and Jo say assisting with payroll tax is a strategy the state government can put in place to help hospitality businesses.

“Payroll tax is one of those quiet, little taxes that people don’t really think of on the outside, but it means a lot to us,” James says.

“It’s one of those ways that doesn’t necessarily affect the staff or the people buying, but [cutting payroll tax] it gives that business a boost without you having to cut any wages,” Jo says.

“They did that through Covid – they basically let businesses not pay their payroll tax for a few months – and it really, really made a difference.”

James says another hindrance to running a business in today’s hospitality climate is “finding chefs”. Jo admits that has been “tricky” and says in Adelaide, hospitality is “not considered a profession”.

“What attracted me to the industry, back in the 80s when I started: it was fun, and there was a level of professionalism, going to work and doing a shift there was a vibe,” James says.

“And I think some changes with regard to more takeaway, more delivery services, it’s just changed the vibe – for one of a better word – a little bit.

“So maybe people don’t have as much fun in the industry anymore. I don’t know. That’s perhaps why they don’t stay in it.

“It’s always been hard work. But I guess there are other options out there that aren’t hard work – aren’t as hard.”

James says with hard work, “you’ve always got to get a return”. For him, this was “the contact with [his] customers”.

The community – which means a lot to both James and Jo – has been their favourite part of owning a café and came “pretty naturally” when starting The Cooks Pantry business 16 years ago.

“We’re locals. I’m here all the time and even though I’m usually in the kitchen, it’s sort of an open kitchen – people just stroll in and have a chat and I can see the front door. If it’s not a wave, then [I might] go out and have a coffee with somebody,” James says.

“So many people come every day that you really build up a bit of a relationship and a friendship, and that just builds.

“I think being reasonably priced, caring about your customers, being consistent, that’s probably helped. And I think just customer recognition – that’s the main thing – people like to be remembered.”

James and Jo are looking forward to whatever comes next for the space.

“But I would imagine it’s time for a refresh, and if it’s a younger person, they’re going to want to do their own thing, and express their own personality,” James says.

“I’d love to see it continue as a cafe, because all of those local people that are used to hanging out down here – it’ll be a shame not to have that.

The Cooks Pantry is at 6 Jetty Street, Grange and open until this Saturday.

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