In Pikesville, a sign at the Essen Room warns customers: Because of the massive increase in the cost of eggs, the deli has “no choice” but to add a $2 surcharge on omelettes.

In Pigtown, Culinary Architecture owner Sylva Lin has run into a weekslong wait list for the local eggs her small business uses in baked goods and sells to customers.

In Locust Point, Southside Diner owner Nick Karvounis watches egg prices shoot up and asks himself, “When’s it gonna stop? What’s the number?”

For Karvounis and anxious customers across the Baltimore region, relief from skyrocketing egg prices can’t come fast enough. President Donald Trump swung to victory on promises to lower grocery prices, though economists say his policies will make them worse.

And we may have yet to hit bottom. In its food price outlook for 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted that already record-high egg prices will increase an additional 20%. And that’s when they’re available. Many local stores, including large retailers such as Whole Foods and Harris Teeter, have gone through stretches when they’re sold out. Those companies did not respond to a request for comment.

The well-known cause: highly pathogenic avian influenza, also known as bird flu. The disease has led farmers to kill more than 100 million chickens since 2022.

“It’s scary all around,” said Andy Bachman of Andy’s Eggs and Poultry in Fallston. He’s monitoring his chickens — who live in an enclosed barn to protect them from wild birds that might carry disease — for signs of illness. Sick chickens cough, just like people, and often drop dead.

While he’s never had his flock get hit before, he said, “That could happen any day; that could happen any minute.”

Bachman said he’s seen such a demand for eggs from customers that he finally had to raise the cost to $8 per dozen. “I held out as long as I could,” he said of keeping lower prices, but he’s getting cleaned out faster than he can restock his refrigerators. He purchases eggs from other small farms to supplement what his hens produce. “I can’t buy cheap eggs on the market. … We have to pass along [the cost] just to stay alive.”

While Lin, an avowed locavore, typically uses local eggs, she’s lately encountered times when her usual farmers don’t have any available. So she’s had to make compromises, sourcing pasteurized eggs from another vendor, which she said leads to inconsistent and less tasty results.

“It’s awful right now,” said Karvounis, whose diner goes through thousands of eggs per week to prepare its menu of egg platters, eggs Benedict and omelettes, the latter of which are made with four eggs each. Still, like many business owners, he’s reluctant to raise prices for those dishes, fearing customers will be turned off. “I am a neighborhood spot,” he said. He relies on loyal regulars who come in multiple times a week, trusting they’ll get giant portions of food for a good price.

Lin is in a similar boat. There’s a limit to how much she can or even wants to charge her customers for products containing eggs, she said. “I don’t believe you should have to spend $20 on breakfast.”

In the meantime, Karvounis is eating the mounting egg costs as he prays for prices to come back to earth. “When things are good I have a smile on my face, and when things are bad I probably have a bigger smile on my face.”

Bachman worries that migration season and the remainder of winter could mean the worst is yet to come for bird flu’s impact on local chickens, including the 3,000 he keeps at his Harford County farm. Last month, officials confirmed four cases of bird flu in Maryland poultry flocks, the first detections since 2023 and an indication that avian flu has hit home. One case was found in a backyard flock in Montgomery County.

“It’s going to take a sustained period with no additional HPAI detections on egg farms to stabilize supply,” said Emily Metz, president and CEO of the American Egg Board, in a statement.

“This isn’t going to get cleaned up overnight,” Bachman said. ”Egg prices aren’t going to drop overnight.”

Another concern is replacing the chickens that die or can’t lay eggs any longer. Bachman placed an order for 800 pullets, or young female chickens, to arrive in April, but it’s unclear whether they’ll come.

For those considering a backyard flock to save money on eggs, think again. Kari Miller, who keeps two egg-laying chickens at her home in Northeast Baltimore, said their feed is so expensive that it’s cheaper just to go to the grocery store — even if eggs are $8 a dozen.