CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WKBW) — General Manager Audrea Arricale has been with Alton's in Cheektowaga for 34 years, and she says the restaurant is more than just a workplace.
"I do love it," Arricale shared. "It's a great family to work for. A lot of people that I work with are like, you know, we've grown up together, and it's a great family."
Each morning, Alton's opens bright and early, serving breakfast favorites all day long.
"We have eggs, omelets, pancakes, waffles, French toast," Arricale said.
Eggs are the most-used ingredient at Alton’s, but Arricale says the cost is becoming a major challenge.
"In the last six months, it's crazy," she explained. "Every week now, it’s gone up and up and up."
The price for a case of eggs—containing 30 dozen—has more than quadrupled, jumping from $50 to $220.
"We're just paying them, but we're not putting out new menus every week," Arricale said.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's price outlook, retail egg prices are expected to increase by 20 percent this year, while farm-level prices could rise by 45 percent.
The two main drivers of the spike? Inflation and a severe outbreak of bird flu.
"We've had bird flu before but never this bad," Senator Chuck Schumer said.
On Monday he visited Western New York and called on the federal government to increase funding for farmers' biosecurity measures, including isolation protocols, enhanced sanitation, and more personal protective equipment, to curb the spread of the disease.
"When eggs go through the roof, it hurts everybody, but that's why we can do something about it," Schumer said.
Arricale remains hopeful that relief is on the horizon.
"I hope that the prices, just like in general, people's lives start to come down," she said.
