ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) – Big meals go with the holidays.
In 2025, the cost of these meals has gone up, but it is not just special meals. Rapidly rising beef prices are lifting the costs of a daily go-to; the burger.
WDBJ7 spoke with the owners of Texas Tavern and Ernie’s in Downtown Roanoke; they said they’re facing a double whammy, since the rising beef costs are coming right after they experienced rising egg prices.
“There are market forces that you can’t get around. Price of commodities, price of meat, price of raw materials that go into the products that you’re buying,” said Matt Bullington.
Bullington and his family have made millions of burgers in the nearly 100 years they’ve owned Texas Tavern, the landmark burger joint that strives to be affordable.
Over the years, they’ve inched up prices, but this year meat costs have exploded, forcing Bullington to do things he doesn’t like to do.
“If we go up, it might be 20 cents on a hamburger or a hot dog, nothing crazy,” he said. “Certainly, food costs have gone up, I would say, 20-30%, depending on what you’re buying. And ultimately, those prices, you have to pass those along a little bit. We don’t like to, but sometimes you’ve got to do that.”
Bullington said what they pay for the hundreds of pounds of beef they go through each week has risen steadily this year.
With inflation, the national decrease in cattle supply, and the increased demand for red meat, burger customers can expect to pay more.
It’s not just Texas Tavern dealing with rising costs. Scotty Smith is the owner at Ernie’s and said everything has gone up, forcing them to raise their price too.
“I mean, it’s always something. If it’s not beef, it’s tomatoes, and if it’s not tomatoes, then it’s pork. If it’s not that, it’s eggs, and if it’s not that, it’s chicken,” Smith said.
For Matt Bullington, his customers are family and serving them has been a tradition, in good times and in challenging ones.
“We try to be as efficient as possible. When my great-grandfather founded it in the heart of the Great Depression in 1930, his motto was to give the customer a fair shake. And that was to ‘offer good food at an affordable price.’ And we still try to do that today,” he closed.
Both owners are hoping costs will stabilize soon, allowing them to keep their prices affordable for their customers.
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Dining and Cooking