Some serious math will be employed by California restaurant owners and diners as a sweeping new minimum wage takes effect next year.

A deal struck by Gov. Gavin Newsom and the fast food industry brought the passage of AB 1228, which gives fast food workers a $20-an-hour minimum wage effective April 1, 2024.

One restaurant chain based in California with a location in Fresno has announced plans to pass the added costs to consumers – without a doubt the first of many to do so in the Golden State.

Greg Levin, president and CEO of BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse, acknowledged reality in a recent earnings call.

“We expect higher menu prices in restaurants throughout the state as operators look to mitigate the added costs,” Levin said, reported the U.S. Sun.

“We are still finalizing our menu pricing plan for next year but expect to be able to offset inflationary pressures.”

Dave Fansler, who operates high-end restaurants in Fresno including Pismo’s, Westwoods BBQ and Yosemite Ranch, made the same call in an interview with The Business Journal last month.

“It’s such an inflationary move,” Fansler said. “There’s no concept for the cost of living in a particular area of the state.”

The law is also expected to expand the use of restaurant kiosks and other cost-cutting moves.

Don’t expect the inflationary pressures of the new fast-food minimum wage to be contained to the restaurant industry. Employers of every stripe in California are dealing with this existential math every day.

“It’s a constant tax grab by California. It’s just never ending, because payroll taxes have to be paid on all this money and that’s what they want,” Fansler said. “They could care less about the actual person. They want the tax money.”