Finding it increasingly difficult to justify eating out at pubs etc

I agree, I’d rather go to a restaurant that I know will be good & spend a little bit more but go out to eat less often.

i work in a pub, we are still busy - Sunday lunches are £15 with a pint of coke being the most popular drink at £3.50. Children’s roast £9 and it’s a carvery. it’s decent home cooked

I think most people feel the same…..

Went to a pub chain for Sunday lunch recently. 2 plates of very average roast beef (1 slice each), some breaded mushrooms, a pint of lager and pint of shandy: £45. No tip either as it was self service on an app.

Good Lord, where do you work - Monaco?!

Yep. We live near the beach, we did an impromptu trip for dinner (fish and chips on the beach). It was £40 for 4 of us but only one had fish and 2 were kids meals.

I consoled myself by knowing that it probably would have cost double for average food in the pub.

Brexit done well thank you

Agree. It’s completely mad. Definitely not something we can justify at current prices.

Agree with everyone. We still eat out though. Small local places are often best.

I honesty don’t know how people can afford to eat out. I say this as someone in a two-income household with no mortgage. As PP said, I feel like I could afford it more when I was earning less. Prices are ridiculous. Service is frequently terrible and it makes you feel even more crap about having spent a fortune. It used to be a once a week thing for us to go out for evening meal. Not anymore. Portion sizes are really tight in some places too. Couple that with your average £15-£25 for a main meal and I want to cry. Also agree about the roasts - terrible and extortionate.

Extremely overpriced ready meals are exactly how I would describe most pub/restaurant food now.

I agree, mainly for us because the quality just generally seems crap these days. We had an expensive meal at a restaurant last night but it was absolutely bloody delicious

Agreed.

TBH finding it increasingly difficult to justify even for drinks at almost £8 a pint or about £12 for a glass of average wine.

We eat out far less frequently than we used to, but when we do eat out it’s at a really nice place. I resent paying £20 for something we can cook better at home, but will happily spend more for a really good meal/experience. We just do it every couple of months instead of every week.

Yep, prices have definitely increased and cafes are charging what were pub prices, and pubs now charge restaurant prices.
I’m always amazed at the cost of a jacket potato, especially when the fillings are added on top. I know they have overheads and you aren’t just paying for the jacket potato, but I do feel ripped off at some places now, even with being sympathetic to their rising costs.

Absolutely agree. I'd still like to eat out occasionally even at a higher price which includes staff and other costs but the quality is absolutely awful.

That and the price of even soft drinks makes it too expensive

I was thinking the exact same thing yesterday. As pp’s have said, the quality has gone down while the cost has gone up and it’s not enjoyable when you feel like you’ve paid over the odds for something you could make at home for half the price.

I try to find a discount code for meals out these days. No code, no sale!

Yep. My staff canteen (so not even glamorous) charges £7.40 for a crappy egg mayo sandwich in a cardboard packet and an Americano. It was only £5 last year. I’ve taken to roasting a whole chicken at the weekend for delicious sandwiches at a fraction of the cost. A chicken, a nice multigrain loaf, and some salad comes in at less than £10 for the week. Much better than sweaty egg.

I’m with you in this.

We go to a pub/restaurant if I’m fed up of cooking all week. Even with discount vouchers/ special offers it mounts up. Some places are charging £9 for a glass of wine. I can get a decent bottle of plonk in Aldi for £6.

Agree! It’s just not worth it at all.

Also Sunday roasts out are a ridiculous price! I swear I could feed a family of four, for the cost of one! And the roast potatoes are never right!

Garden centre cafes are the worst! Call themselves restaurants so they can charge £15 for a toasted sandwich or £12.50 for avo on toast, I noticed last week.

We rarely go out for dinner these days unless there is a really good special offer like 50% off mains etc. Also like others have said I don’t enjoy it anymore. Prices have gone up but standard’s seem to have really dropped over the last couple of years.

Obviously restaurants have had to put up their prices due their own increase in bills and wages etc, they haven’t had a choice.

We do enjoy a takeaway and can usually get really good deals for them online, added bonus is I get to sit indoors in my pjs.

It’s all gone up massively, hasn’t it? I used to be able to go out more when I was young and short on money than I am now as an adult with a decent, professional job.

Even cafes are expensive these days, not just restaurants.