Spill splashes Orlando

With tar balls reaching the shores of the Florida Panhandle, Orlando-area seafood restaurants and their suppliers say they are starting to feel the effects of the BP Gulf oil spill.

Local eateries and suppliers all say they have seen a jump in seafood prices, and some say they may have to raise their prices to compensate, including Winter Park Fish Company and Lee and Rick's Half Shell Oyster Bar.

However, both restaurants have yet to do so.

Orlando restaurant Lee and Rick's specializes in serving oysters, raw or steamed, and by the bucket or by the dozen. This oyster bar has been in business since 1950, and 90 percent of its business is oyster sales.

Lee and Rick's general manager Jean Richter wonders what will become of his restaurant if oil spreads into the Panhandle, reaching Apalachicola. He said while most seafood restaurants serve only 20 bags of oysters a week, his restaurant serves 170 bags of oysters a week.

"We get 90 percent of our oysters from Apalachicola, and it's caused them to go up in price," Richter said. "We're eating the price increase right now; we haven't gone up in price here in our restaurant just for our customers."

Apalachicola is one of the few places that remain untainted by oil. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has either closed fishing areas or placed fishing restrictions along coastal states, including Texas, Louisiana , Mississippi and Alabama.

BP has cut checks totaling $50 million to businesses who have filed a loss of business claim, according to CNNmoney.com. BP has only answered 18,000 out of 37,000 claims so far.

Phil Chimento, chef manager at Winter Park Fish Company, said the Gulf produces 31 percent of seafood in the U.S. with shrimp being one of its major types of fish.

Cinthia Sandoval, marketing director of Titusville based Wild Ocean Seafood Market , said the Gulf waters are by far one of the largest producers for oysters.

Potential outcomes for businesses

Richter said if oil reaches Apalachicola, he will not be importing oysters. He said he could get them from other states, but the price would be too expensive and his customers wouldn't pay that kind of price for oysters.

This means oysters may no longer be on Lee and Rick's menu.

Orange County Commissioner Linda Stewart said people need to realize that Central Florida's small businesses depend on shellfish to survive.

"Just because we are inland doesn't mean we do not have impacts from the oil spill," she said.

Chimento said the oil spill could mean more importing of seafood for his restaurant, which would eventually mean prices going up, because restaurants would then have to pay tariffs. He said his restaurant may have to import shrimp from places such as Mexico, the Bahamas and Costa Rica.

He anticipates severe price increases, like his popular Mahi sandwich selling for $15 instead of the regular $11 if the fish's price increases from its usual $13-$14 a pound.

Owner Mike Merrifield of Wild Ocean Seafood Market, which specializes in retail and wholesale, said his business is seeing price increases because 40 percent of the U.S. Gulf waters are closed to fishery harvesting.

"What's happened now are people, suppliers and restaurants have panicked and gone on buying sprees in order to stock up on products they were afraid either would not be available or would be increasing in price," Merrifield said. "Now what we are seeing is a general slowdown in purchasing of seafood products."

This behavior has caused price increases that vary from product to product. He said wild caught shrimp is selling for $1 more per pound than last year.

David Barber, owner of Barber's Seafood, a seafood provider based out of Apalachicola, said the oil spill has been hard on his business. He said he has sold gallons of oysters, but cannot fulfill those orders because sales outweigh production.

Barber usually sends a truck to Orlando twice a week, which may now be paired to once a week because of weak oyster production.

What about tourism?

The tourism bureau maintains that Central Florida tourism will not be affected by the oil spill, saying that tourists need to understand that Orlando is not on the Florida Gulf coast.

Commissioner Stewart said one thing that may help Orlando is the Harry Potter attraction coming to Universal Studios.

Dr. Abraham Pizam, dean of Rosen College of Hospitality Management said, "Most people who come to Central Florida go to the parks, and the ones who come for business purposes may visit other tourist attractions, but very few of them combine the beaches with staying here for attractions or business purposes."

Pizam said if anything, Central Florida might indirectly benefit from the oil spill, because people who initially wanted to go the beaches might move inland and visit Central Florida.

However, Trish Strawn, co-leader of Slow Food Orlando and livestock manager of Deep Creek Ranch, disagreed. She believes tourism is being affected by the oil spill.

May 1 is her business' season to sell stock, and right now, they aren't selling as much. She said restaurants and hotels are not as full as they usually are during this time of year.

Whether in the tourism or seafood business, Central Floridians are feeling the effects, even before the oil hits nearby shores.

File a claim

In response to the possible damage the oil spill could do on local small businesses in the Orlando area, Commissioner Stewart and the Orange County staff is coordinating a list of numbers and contacts to assist business owners in the event they may have to file a claim for a loss of businesses.

The phone numbers and information can be found on Commissioner Stewart's page on the Orange County website: www.ocfl.net.