SPOKANE, Wash. — Inlander Restaurant Week is in full swing in Spokane and restaurants throughout the Inland Northwest are currently seeing an uptick in customers. Unfortunately, some restaurants are struggling to meet the demand due to staffing issues.
Noreen Hiskey runs her restaurant Inland Curry out of Feast World Kitchen.
For Hiskey, cooking is her passion. However, she said that running a restaurant during the COVID-19 pandemic is challenging. She has faced everything from supply issues to staffing shortages, adding that this is an issue restaurants are seeing across the board.
Inlander Restaurant Week has turned up the heat, but Hiskey said her competitors have stepped up to the plate.
"[The staffing shortages have] definitely brought the restaurant community closer together," Hiskey said. "One, because we understand the challenges we're facing. Having experienced it firsthand, it makes you more sympathetic, as well as empathetic to go help them out when they need a hand. For example, I've helped out at friends' restaurants like D'Bali Asian Bistro, where she was short-staffed, and I know Restaurant Week is a super busy week."