Even award-winning chefs

Styrian restaurateurs fight for their guests

Graz's Stadthalle currently resembles a huge cooking show.(Bild: Pail Sepp)

A big rush at the Graz trade fair: The mood in the catering industry has been better in the past, but at the "Rolling Pin Convention", attempts are being made to draw joint visions of a future-proof industry. What is the problem for local restaurateurs? And what needs to change so that eating out remains affordable?

Rising purchasing costs, dwindling staff and fewer customers willing to pay. Just yesterday, Sepp Schellhorn, restaurateur and Neos MP, emphasized in the "Krone" newspaper how landlords are also suffering from the upswing in delivery services. Against this backdrop, Graz is currently becoming the center for Austria's restaurateurs for the tenth time: 8000 guests are expected at the "Rolling Pin Convention" on 6000 square meters - all of whom work in the industry themselves. On stage will be gastronomic celebrities such as Styrian celebrity chef Richard Rauch, who says: "Especially at lunchtime, it's a challenge to get guests into the restaurant."