Central NY restaurant owners join Schumer in Syracuse to denounce ‘chaotic’ Trump tariffs
Business owners said the president's trade policy is driving up costs and keeping customers away.
Syracuse, N.Y. — For Michelle Roesch, the feeling of uncertainty and worry over her restaurant businesses is familiar.
“It’s the same kind of stress and panic we felt during the pandemic,” said Roesch, the co-owner of the Emerald Cocktail Kitchen on Tipperary Hill and the soon-to-close Brasserie Bar & Bistro in Camillus.
But this stress is caused by the effects of President Donald Trump’s tariffs, Roesch said. The tariffs Trump has imposed, and others he has announced and paused, “make it impossible to plan ahead,” Roesch said. “We don’t know what will happen to prices, costs or even what will be available.”
Her business depends on imported goods ranging from gin and prosecco to limes, avocados and cheese. And, she said, business has slowed because customers “are worried about how much they’re spending.”
U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer used the Emerald Cocktail Kitchen as a backdrop today to call for an end to Trump’s tariff policies, which he described as “chaotic and destructive.”
Schumer also announced he will try to force a vote in Congress to end the tariffs. Schumer is the Senate’s Democratic leader, but both houses of Congress have Republican majorities.
Schumer said Trump’s tariffs could drive up costs for local families about $5,000 a year. He called special attention today to the impact of the tariffs on small businesses like restaurants.
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has championed the use of tariffs on foreign goods, saying they could help America’s economy by bolstering domestic manufacturing.
He first announced tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports. Then on April 2 he declared more tariffs on countries around the globe. A week later he announced a 90-day pause on many of those, while leaving hefty tariffs on China in place.
Trump’s tariff plans have also caused turmoil in financial markets.
In addition to Roesch, several other small business owners spoke during the event with Schumer to describe the negative effects they’re seeing from the tariffs.
For Tom Scozzafava, who owns the 1812 Brewing Co. with brewpub locations in Sackets Harbor and Watertown, one of the noticeable effects is a drop in business from Canadian visitors. He said Canadians typically make up 15 to 20 percent of his customers.
He also cited the tariffs on Canadian goods, such as grain for the beer he brews, glass for bottles and aluminum for cans. And, he noted, there was the reciprocal action by the Ontario provincial beers stores, which pulled all American products from their shelves. That alone is about 10% of his sales.
“It all just seem so damaging, and so unnecessary,” he said.
Katie Aiello, owner of Character Coffee in Utica, described the difficulties of running a business that is dependent on a commodity grown in foreign countries.
“It’s hard to plan, price or grow due to the instability in the market,” said Aiello, who is also a member of the Utica Common Council.
In prepared statements issued by Schumer’s team, other business owners in Central New York described similar concerns. They include downtown Syracuse business owners Andrew Brooks of Talking Cursive Brewing Co. and Sara Tong-Ngork of the Firecracker Thai Kitchen in the Salt City Market.
“We plan to increase menu prices by 10-15% to help offset rising costs,” Tong-Ngork said in a statement. She said that still won’t cover all of the increased costs.
“Tariffs have made it more difficult to find authentic, imported ingredients like jasmine rice and rice noodles at local markets,” she added.
Schumer said his plan when Congress returns from its recess is to push for a vote that would cancel the emergency that Trump declared in order to impose the tariffs. Ending the emergency would rescind the tariffs, he said.
“Enough is enough,” Schumer said. “I’ve never seen anything across the board so devastating.”
Don Cazentre writes for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at
[email protected], or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.
