Thousands of restaurateurs from around the world were in Chicago this week for the National Restaurant Association’s annual convention. Many of them say they’re feeling the pinch from rising food and fuel costs.

On the main convention floor, vendors hawk everything you could possibly need to run a restaurant, and then some. There are pots and pans, kitchen appliances, food, TVs and even specialized shoes for cooks, just to name a few items.

Folks seem to be having a good time, but things get serious when you ask about food prices.

WEINBERG: Everyone is feeling a margin squeeze.

Chris Weinberg is President of the BarFly Group, a hospitality consulting agency. He says vendors are charging higher delivery fees, and food prices are up.

WEINBERG: Well, what restaurants have to do is have good agreements with their distributors. Know what they’re buying, know when they’re buying it, and try to lock prices in as best they can. But then inside their four walls have very high standards and tightly controlled recipes that are adhered to so that one cook isn’t giving out say 7 ounces of fries, and another is giving out 10.

Some restaurants are cutting back on portion sizes. Others say they’ve had to make price increases too, which they say is a difficult move to make in tough economic times.

Still, Weinberg says it isn’t exactly all doom and gloom. He says restaurants that take good care of their customers and pay close attention to the bottom line are doing just fine.