Holy shit - is this really the cost of takeaways these days

[hattie43]

I've had two occasions to have takeaway in the last couple of weeks and I'm amazed at the costs now .

Chinese - 2 x sweet n sour chicken
2 egg fried rice
1 x prawn crackers

             £38.40

2 large cod and 1 large chips to share £28

Seems prices really have shot up .

Yes but people are often eating double the amount that they'd normally eat for a meal when they do that, so of course it's expensive, it's like complaining about the price of steak but each person is having 2 steaks!

With the cost of rent, rates, energy, oil, meat, flour, spices, ins ,wages (which are soon to increase for min), it must be a headache trying to run a takeaway in what used to be a nice cheap affordable treat. I imagine a lot are trying hard to offer value for money but may need to cut the meat offerings in a dish and bulk up with noodles etc?
Fish and chips are prob a tenner in most places now but prob little profit …
Cant be easy…

It works out about 15 quid per head for indifferent Indian main each and sharing a starter. Quality is terrible and even the kids don’t want to bother with it. We don’t eat out we can’t afford takeaways. I can’t afford to have people over for dinner. Basically I now just offer/receive cups of tea. It is the chat that is the main thing anyway.

I don’t blame the takeaways btw

It's never been cheap, even 10 years ago, it was expensive then.

My local the Chinese would be £19 and the chippy about £17

We rarely get takeaway, occasionally an Indian with family. If you look at what you get for the price it's not worth it. If I don't have much time I could buy steak from the supermarket, quick to cook and still cheaper than takeaway, or pan fry chicken, or eggs on toast.

It's not just that the cost has doubled (mind you I remember Chinese being 3 quid and chips 50p!), it's that it takes two hours to arrive, is cold and badly cooked, most of the meat has been replaced with veg and the portion size is tiny (and does not do a leftover meal the next day 😂).

We got a cod taco, large haddock, fish bites and 2 large chips the other day. Was 25 quid.

We used to buy Tesco pasteis de nata in packs of 4 from their bakery - this time last year they were £1.20. Yesterday I noted they were £1.55.

Don't get me started on the cost of FAGE Total Greek yoghurt, which is my staple breakfast food (with a bit of fruit). Last year they slyly removed 50g from both the 500g and 1000g tubs, simultaneously jacking up the price - the 500g tub, which was from £2-2.50 (depending on offers) last year is now routinely £3.00 - 3.50 for LESS yoghurt.

My job is linked to food purchase. The average increase over the last 12 months is around 33% for ingredients.
go back from pre covid and that percentage increases further.
when you consider most hospitality businesses have endured these increases, huge utility cost increases (spend cap was domestic), increasing staff costs, repayment of the bounce back loans from Covid, and all the costs the public didn't see from furlough, then it's no surprise that they have to increase their prices or close the doors.

Yeah we rarely get takeaways nowadays either!

Fish and chips I bought just before Christmas was £40 for our family of 6. That was 2 large cod, 1 small cod, 1 pie, 1 pudding, scampi, 2 large chips, 2 peas and 2 gravy - around £6.40pp

Chinese bought at the weekend was £46. That was 2 chow mein, 1 special rice, 1 Cantonese beef, 1 fried rice, prawn roast and spring rolls - only 4 of us that night so £11.50pp 😳

I completely understand that and it’s hard. But the fact is that many consumers can’t afford to pay the increase. We’re a fairly high income household but have had to cut back massively on takeaways, and more often than not decide to just cook something quick and easy instead. I don’t know what the solution is, there probably isn’t one.

We had a curry delivery last night:
1 x veggie main
1 x chicken main
1 x rice
1 x spinach side
3 x poppadums
and it was £31. usually enough for a small lunch today but there's none left.

The last time I had fish and chips it was over £50 for 3 adults, shocking.

I met a friend for lunch at the local Hungry Horse the other week. It's not my fave place as I've had some terrible meals in there, sticky tables and dodgy people. Well its changed completely, lovely and clean, decent clientele and we had fish, chips, mushy peas and curry sauce x 2 for £11.99!!! I'm converted. Wasn't greasy and it was a generous portion.

Yes both of those seem very expensive. Two cod and one large chips where I am would be £22, the Chinese about £25.

I've just looked at the nearest to me, it would be £6.50 for the sweet and sour and £3.99 for the rice.

They always put a bag of prawn crackers on the order, I don't even think they are on the menu.

Takeaways have become hugely expensive, especially if you want them delivered as well. It's no longer a weekly treat for us, more a monthly one. We can easily spend 40-50 quid for 2 of us on a curry with sides and puppadoms etc.

That would be less than €20 where I am (boarder Ireland), so £17/18 it's in around €9 for a main with boiled rice or chips. €1 extra for fried rice. Delivery is €4 and I am about 3 miles out of town so I think that's very reasonable. So yours is def more expensive.

I got a large bag of chips the other day and it was €4

Indian is really expensive though, about €14 per main and that includes no rice/ naan. The quality of their chicken though is way better.

We had a Chinese on Sunday, it was the first one we'd had since before Covid and omg, couldn't believe how much the prices had gone up....

I x chicken fried rice
1 x king prawn fried rice
1 x Singapore chow mein
1 x chicken foo Yung
2 x pots of sweet & sour sauce
1 x pot of curry sauce
1 x egg fried rice
2 X bags of prawn crackers

Came to £34.65!!
Still cheap by comparison to the op's but still a heck of a lot more than I expected.
We are up North, guess that makes a difference.

Wouldn't touch cod if you paid me....haddock or nothing round here!

Fish & chips at my usual chippie for 2 large cod & 1 large chips would be £26.40.

The place (or should that be plaice) has a great reputation & is always busy despite other chip shops in the same town being cheaper.
It's too far to walk & I don't like waiting for a possibly lukewarm delivery so I always drive there. I know other friends who live further out drive there as well!

I live in the South East so I've always assumed that might be part of the price.

I never buy takeaway, but recently DS and DiL come to stay. First night, went to see my Mum, it got late, they fancied a takeaway, recently opened Turkish sounded good. I ordered 2 starters, 2 mains, 1 dessert, as it’s DiL favourite. The food was very average, it cost £49.50. Thought there would be heaps of food, there wasn’t. Fortunately neither Mum nor I were hungry.

I don’t know if location has anything to do with it? DS lives East Midlands, I live in a market town in South East. We looked at comparable prices and they would have spent about £30 for similar, but far bigger portions.

Pizza takeaway near my niece, every day between 4 and 5pm :- Pizza of your choice, half a garlic bread pizza, half a cheese garlic pizza, chips, onion rings, very large salad, dip and 4 cans of coke, Fanta etc less than £9, everything is half price for that hour, bargain. The queue is massive.

I'm amazed at all these people who order two of the same dish, rather than ordering two different ones and sharing!

No good for a lot of people as they’re still at work at that time!

We very rarely have a takeaway now. - it’s too expensive and not great quality. Fish and chips is £12 a portion, Chinese about £14 for 1 x dish and plain rice. For a family of four ( teens), it’s £60-£70.
I now either cook something like a fried rice or make a curry and rice.