Restaurant inflation was up 8.8 percent from a year ago in March, according to the latest consumer price index, and customers say they're more carefully considering their culinary spending. Cheddar News correspondent Ashley Mastronardi visited Isabelle's Osteria in midtown Manhattan to ask patrons how the higher prices are impacting their wallets. 

Restaurant inflation was up 8.8 percent from a year ago in March, according to the latest consumer price index, and customers say they're more carefully considering their culinary spending. Cheddar News correspondent Ashley Mastronardi visited Isabelle's Osteria in midtown Manhattan to ask patrons how the higher prices are impacting their wallets.&nbsp;

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Restaurant Inflation Pushes Patrons to Curb Culinary Spending

Diners were boxing up their leftovers here at Isabelle's restaurant in New York City ensuring the biggest bang for their buck. Now that restaurant inflation has increased to 8.8% over the past year. Customers say they're more carefully considering their culinary cuisine. I give it a little bit more thought than before. We just need to adjust that certain products are no longer affordable for one dinner might be affordable for another dinner. Isabel's managing partner, Michael Schatzberg says higher menu prices are a chain reaction. If gas prices are higher, the trucking costs more, then that gets passed on to us. So it's not just the actual products cost more, it's the transportation costs more and that trickles down. Experts agree, but predict restaurant spending won't slow down. They say customers want a sense of normalcy after a long pandemic. Now when people are going back to the restaurants, we are so hungry, uh pun intended for, for that feeling of normality that we're willing to spend a premium to eat out and we are going into debt to try and find this level of normality. If there's an incremental cost in dining, it's agnostic for me, you know, because experiencing the moment and being with friends and eating great food is way more important diners we spoke to did have mixed reactions to the higher prices. But for the most part, people say they're going to continue to dine out Ashley Masar Chet news.