Hilton Head's worker shortage causes popular Bluffton restaurant to close for summer
Red Fish Bluffton has closed it doors for the summer, joining other Beaufort County businesses that have adjusted hours and business practices because of a workforce shortage in the area.
Employees have been moved to sister restaurants Red Fish Hilton Head and Old Oyster Factory, according to a post on Red Fish Bluffton's Facebook page.
"We are closing for summer and will reopen in the fall. With Bluffton business being slower during the summer months and the local labor shortage impacting our sister restaurants, Old Oyster Factory and Red Fish Hilton Head, this will enable us to move employees so we will be adequately staffed during the peak summer months on the island," the post on Facebook and the restaurant's website says.
Red Fish Bluffton is located on Bruin Road in Old Town. The upscale restaurant specializes in Lowcountry seafood, steaks, and fresh local fruits and vegetables.
Katie Manley, marketing director for the restaurant, said the decision to close for the summer wasn't easy for executives to make.
"It was certainly a difficult decision," she said. "It just seemed to make more sense to think of the good of the whole."
Manley said the Bluffton restaurant is not as busy during the summer, but the opposite is true of the Hilton Head Island restaurants, which get busier through mid-August.
The summer rush makes it harder to train employees who lack experience in the specific skills the restaurant needs, she explained.
"It's just harder to fill, in particular, positions like line cooks," she said.
She spoke of needing experienced servers to maintain a high level of customer service, but added that the labor shortage was "across the board."
Manley could not say how many employees were affected by the decision to close the Bluffton location.
She said some employees chose not to relocate.
Manley said they hoped offering discounted kids meals and reminding patrons that they can make reservations to avoid waiting for a table might tempt some Bluffton patrons to make the drive to the Hilton Head restaurants.
"We are planning on reopening in the fall but talking about tweaking the concept a little bit ... maybe tweaking the menu," she said.
Red Fish isn't alone in feeling the effect of Beaufort County's workforce shortage.
"The whole island is a disaster zone right now," Steve Carb, SERG Restaurant Group president, recently told the Washington Post.
The restaurant group cited not having enough employees when it scaled back its usage of the Poseidon Rooftop Bar and needed to close sections of Skull Creek Dockside at times in recent months.
Massage Envy closed earlier this month on Hilton Head after the owner said workers had difficulty finding housing.
Other businesses such Covert Aire and Palmetto Pool Contracting said in April they have struggled to find skilled labor.
Hospitality managers on Hilton Head recently formed a group to combat what they say is a growing problem.
This story was originally published June 25, 2018 at 3:58 PM with the headline "Hilton Head's worker shortage causes popular Bluffton restaurant to close for summer."