{"id":241560,"date":"2026-04-09T05:54:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T05:54:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/241560\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T05:54:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T05:54:08","slug":"chef-cuts-plastic-from-restaurant-raises-prices-just-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/241560\/","title":{"rendered":"Chef Cuts Plastic From Restaurant, Raises Prices Just $2"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\"AA restaurant’s simple switch to eliminate plastic shows how small changes can make a big environmental impact.Corpus Christi Today<\/p>\n

Chef Edward Lee, known for his appearances on shows like Iron Chef America and Top Chef, decided to eliminate plastic from his Washington, D.C. restaurant SHIA. After running the numbers for a year, Lee found that raising menu prices by just $2 was enough to cover the extra costs of going plastic-free. Lee shared his experience on a panel at Hearst’s Eco-Conscious Living Summit, where he was joined by other experts discussing the challenges of improving water quality and reducing plastic pollution.<\/p>\n

Why it matters<\/p>\n

Lee’s success in eliminating plastic from his restaurant operations demonstrates that going plastic-free may be more achievable for businesses than commonly assumed. His experience provides a model for other restaurants and food service providers looking to reduce their environmental impact, even if it means slightly higher prices for customers.<\/p>\n

The details<\/p>\n

At his fine dining restaurant SHIA, Chef Edward Lee decided to eliminate all plastic from the kitchen and operations. After tracking the costs for a year, he found that raising menu prices by just $2 was enough to cover the extra expenses. Lee shared this experience on a panel at Hearst’s Eco-Conscious Living Summit, where he was joined by other experts discussing water quality and plastic pollution challenges. The panelists agreed that while the problems may seem daunting, individual and collective actions can make a meaningful difference.<\/p>\n

Last month, SHIA raised prices to accommodate the extra expense of going plastic-free.Lee has been researching eliminating plastic from his restaurant operations over the past couple of years.<\/p>\n

The players<\/p>\n

Edward Lee<\/p>\n

A chef known for his appearances on shows like Iron Chef America and Top Chef, who owns the fine dining restaurant SHIA in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n

Betsy Froelich<\/p>\n

A representative from Zip Water, a company that makes plumbing systems to filter out microplastics and other contaminants.<\/p>\n

Heather McTeer Toney<\/p>\n

The executive director of Beyond Petrochemicals, a campaign aiming to slow or stop the expansion of oil and gas facilities, especially in the South.<\/p>\n

Ashlan Cousteau<\/p>\n

An ocean restorationist and the CEO of SeaVoir Wellness, a company that sells omega-3 supplements made from lab-grown algae.<\/p>\n

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\n What they\u2019re saying<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone says\u2014when I talk to restaurants and other chefs\u2014Well, it’s too expensive. You can’t get rid of all the plastics.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Edward Lee, Chef<\/p>\n

\u201cOur tasting menu has gone up $2. That’s all it took.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Edward Lee, Chef<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have so many design challenges that are visible. You don’t like the layout of a space [in a building]? Ok, knock down a wall, rearrange some things, and you can find a new solution pretty easily. Water quality is an invisible problem, but once it is recognized, it can be attacked like any other design problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Betsy Froelich, Representative, Zip Water<\/p>\n

\u201cDon’t get overwhelmed. It’s a process. Give yourself grace. But: do better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Ashlan Cousteau, Ocean Restorationist, CEO of SeaVoir Wellness<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next<\/p>\n

Lee plans to continue tracking the costs and customer response as SHIA maintains its plastic-free operations.<\/p>\n

The takeaway<\/p>\n

Chef Edward Lee’s experience shows that eliminating plastic from restaurant operations may be more achievable than commonly believed, requiring only a modest price increase that customers are willing to accept. His success provides a model for other food service providers looking to reduce their environmental impact.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a A restaurant’s simple switch to eliminate plastic shows how small…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":241561,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[155,157,156],"class_list":["post-241560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-corpus-christi","tag-corpus-christi","tag-corpus-christi-headlines","tag-corpus-christi-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241560","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=241560"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241560\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/241561"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=241560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=241560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=241560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}