"restaurants started reducing hours..." >> This is EXACTLY what I mean by "supply curve shifting down." Restaurants are not willing to supply the same number of

"restaurants started reducing hours..." >> This is EXACTLY what I mean by "supply curve shifting down." Restaurants are not willing to supply the same number of meals/hours to the market at the given price. "My understanding this year is that popular restaurants require reservations 60+ days in advance." >> This is what a shortage looks like. Long lines and empty shelves. People who are willing to pay the advertised price, but can't because there isn't anything to buy. "started reducing hours due to labor shortages." >> Meaning that there is more demand for labor than supply at the current price (wage). The supply curve for labor moved down, causing a shortage of labor at the current price. That's a 'shortage' as perceived by businesses that don't want to pay the actual market clearing price/wage. In your example, a labor shortage is leading to a restaurant shortage. In both cases caused by changes in the supply and/or demand curves (down and/or right, respectively). You could also go farther upstream to the housing market and say that because the supply curve of housing moved down, house prices went up, and that caused labor's supply curve to move down accordingly. All of these things ultimately mean fewer things and less stuff, at higher prices.