2008

Coal Chemical Ken Ho, the owner of Tin Tin Buffet, first noticed the cost of his ingredients rising in the beginning of 2007. It started with a few distributors adding surcharges to make up for higher transportation costs, particularly those importing canned goods such as water chestnuts and bamboo shoots. Before long, each of Ho's half-dozen suppliers were adding fuel charges. Ho, who also manages the Asian restaurant near Pineville in south Charlotte, swallowed the increases. But they continued. A 25-gallon container of vegetable oil -- a kitchen staple -- rose to $29 from $18. The price of sugar, dairy and eggs, other commonly used ingredients, also rose sharply, he said. "At the beginning, we absorbed as much as we can," said Ho, who opened the restaurant in 2002. "There are limits to what we can do." In March, he raised his weekday prices about 50 cents to $8.95 for lunch and by a dollar to $16.95 for dinner. His lunch crowd, mostly nearby office and blue-collar workers, has fallen off, he said. But his weekend crowd has stayed strong. Many of those patrons are Asian residents living in outlying towns, such as Hickory and Rock Hill, who trek to Charlotte to shop at Asian food businesses, he said. These customers continue to eat at the brightly painted red and yellow restaurant, which Ho estimates serves about 5,000 customers a week. He says his buffet gives him an advantage over his competitors. Because his menu isn't fixed, he can substitute items that become too expensive. And his diners don't load up on rice, which has jumped 50 percent in price this year. Chinese take-out restaurants use lots of rice, because they must provide it with each order, he noted. In contrast, his customers opt to nosh on choices from butter shrimp to sushi. His most popular item, only served at dinner: snow crab legs.