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Over the last week, there’s been increased chatter within Chicago’s restaurant industry about how an increased minimum wage would affect business. Congressional Democrats have introduced legislation that would raise the federal hourly minimum wage to $15 more than double the current limit and eliminate the lower tipped minimum wage that many restaurant and bar workers earn in Illinois and other states by 2027.
For instance, Ursula Siker of modern Jewish deli Jeff & Judes in Ukrainian Village stirred the pot with an Instagram post attempting to explain why it’s disheartening to hear complaints from patrons about costs. Siker writes that Jeff & Judes’ 10 employees are paid $15 to $17 an hour and they make nearly everything on the menu on site, from curing and smoking the pastrami and corned beef to simmering stock overnight to baking naturally leavened bread.