Consumers, restaurants prepare for Easter weekend

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Crowds flocked to the Farmer's Market in Raleigh on Friday, as Easter preparations and the start of strawberry season helped spur traffic.

Away from the rows of produce, Javier Pintos and his family were buying plants and flowers to update their garden.

"(We'll) do some eggs in the front yard with kids and neighbors," said Pintos, about their Easter Sunday plans.

That will be more costly this year.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the price of a dozen Grade A large eggs as of March was $6.23, more than double the rate last April of $2.86.

"We cut costs whenever we can, shopping at different stores. But these girls are happy with most things, so that's good," said Rebecca Tucker, speaking of her two kids.

There's better news for consumers when it comes to the price of ham, which as of last month was $4.84 a pound, down five cents from last April's price of $4.89 a pound.

"We're always looking for ways on how do we maintain our value of quality, but also offer something of value and consistency to our guests," said Amber Moshakos, President of LM Restaurants, which owns several restaurants in Raleigh.

One of those restaurants, Taverna Agora, is offering its annual Easter Sunday buffet.

"Easter this year is very special for us because it is Greek Easter as well as American Easter. The calendar has them falling on the same day. But Easter here at Taverna has always been a special place for our community to come and gather, experience Greek cuisine. So lamb, tzatziki, saganaki, some of our fan favorites," said Moshakos.

Moshakos' father Lou, a native of Greece, started the restaurant in early 2003.

"This is one of a kind. Where else can you dine rooftop and get to experience being downtown but yet feeling a part of nature, and get to experience our cuisine," said Moshakos.

Celebrating its 10th year on Hillsborough Street, Moshakos shared they've made concerted efforts to resist price fluctuations on their menu, including keeping the price of the buffet flat. While they have not yet been directly impacted by rising prices from tariffs, Moshakos said her team is already taking steps to prepare in the event that changes.

"We are deploying some strategy where we pull forward inventory. We buy up just a little bit to kind of hedge our bets should something happen. We don't want to run out of any of our products," said Moshakos.

Broadly, according to an annual survey from the National Retail Federation and Proper Insights & Analytics, consumers are expected to spend $23.6 billion on Easter this year, up from $22.4 billion in 2024, though down slightly from the record of $23 billion spent in 2023.