Bay Area's High Cost Of Living Squeezes Restaurant Workers, Chefs And Owners
The San Francisco Bay Area is known for its love of fine food. It's also increasingly becoming known as an area where it's almost impossible to live on a service-industry wage.
Every morning at around 5 a.m., Armando Ibarra wakes up in the back of his van. He has been living there for the past couple of years. On his dashboard rests a holy candle. A rosary hangs from the rearview mirror.
Ibarra walks over to his job at a chain hotel near San Francisco's airport. He says that at least he can wash up there. "I take a shower, drink my coffee, smoke a cigarette and ready to work."
The hotel restaurant where Ibarra works in the U.S.).
