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North Vancouver’s iconic Tomahawk Barbecue has closed for dinner four nights a week while owner Chuck Chamberlain tries to find kitchen help.

In three months since losing several longtime cooks, his ads have drawn just 12 applicants and plenty of no-shows. The two that showed up for their scheduled interview were hired on the spot.

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One new hire was scheduled to start a week ago on Saturday morning, but hasn’t shown up yet.

“Most of my chefs had been here more than 30 years, so I didn’t know hiring would be such a problem,” said Chamberlain, who has employees commuting from as far way as Port Moody. “Well it’s become such a problem that we have to close at four o’clock Monday through Thursday.”

Chamberlain is hardly alone.

The Noodle House on Lonsdale Avenue in North Vancouver shut down permanently a few weeks ago due to a chronic shortage of staff and sporadic one-day restaurant closures are popping up all over the Metro Vancouver. In Vancouver, Aphroidite’s Organic Cafe has suspended all dinner service for the fall and winter due to a staff shortage.