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Original poster

Restaurant prices are just ludicrous

466 replies

Mummyhokey · 03/08/2025 11:52

I know that this is hardly breaking news, but seriously what the actual fuck is going on with prices in restaurants?

Went out to a High Street chain restaurant last night for DD’s birthday. So whilst the food was cooked fresh on site there was absolutely no local chef input into the menu etc. There were also only two waiting staff working a busy place so the service was slow even though they were doing their best.

The cost of the meals was, in my opinion, completely unrealistic in terms of what we were getting. Little change from £20 for a basic burger or chicken dish. Another fiver for a side order. So for the four of us, £100 gets us one course each. Drinks on top, £3.95 for a glass of watered down Diet Coke. Twice that for a beer. £6 for a slice of cake for dessert.

This seems typical now for restaurants. It’s just totally unaffordable for most families to do this more than very occasionally, surely? I get that utilities and wages have gone up, as have the cost of ingredients. But have they gone up by that much? The increases seem outrageous. That slice of cake works out at about £50 for the entire cake. I could buy the ingredients for that burger for well under a fiver.

And then the 12.5% optional service charge added to the bill so that the options are ‘Pay it’ or ‘Ask for it to be removed and feel like a dick for doing so’.

No offence to hospitality business owners or the people working in them, but this just can’t be sustainable surely?

OP posts:
Eric1964 · 04/08/2025 20:56

Daisy12Maisie · 03/08/2025 12:01

Growing up we only went out to dinner about twice a year when my gran came to visit and she paid. I think the notion of going out to eat regularly for average people is a fairly new one.
I eat out about once every few months. I spend a lot of money on food at home though as we like to cook and try and eat healthy nice food.

That's roughly what I came here to say, whilst trying to avoid a tone of, "Eeeeh, we 'ad it bluddy tough!", not that you did that, @Daisy12Maisie .

The restaurant business, it's clear to me, is unbelievably tough. I don't think they're ripping anyone off. If you're going out to eat, you just need to be choosy so that, when the bill for £150 does arrive at the table, you don't resent paying it.

Fcs1985 · 04/08/2025 20:59

God I thought it was bad paying 60quid for 2 adult n 3 kids at local fish n chip restaurant was pricey. I mean food was delicious and view was great but eating outside deffo pricey these days xx

YowieeF · 04/08/2025 21:00

So £25 per head for dinner, drink and a pudding… when did you last go out - 1994?

Lovely13 · 04/08/2025 21:05

I am trying to think of a restaurant where I went wow! at the food. Yes, fine, but nothing as good as I cook as home. And for 10th of price. And don’t get me started on cost of drinks.

Deathraystare · 04/08/2025 21:06

I fancied some chips. Had a look at a menu in a Turkish restaurant. £4.50! Maybe they were gold plated!!!

YB1985 · 04/08/2025 21:21

I have to completely agree with you here, as someone who used to eat out A LOT at least once or twice a week with friends or family... prices of dishes have doubled at least.

what youre describing is almost 30 pound for a burger chips and a soft drink.. 36 with a dessert... its never been as steep as that.

croydon15 · 04/08/2025 21:35

Mummyhokey · 04/08/2025 19:06

That’s not the point. I know how much I consider to be a fair price for a meal out. If a restaurant has overheads that make that too cheap to be profitable, that doesn’t change what I consider to be a fair price for a meal out.

There are lots of comments on this thread saying ‘Ah but wages + taxes + utilities + ingredients + everything else means that the lowest we can charge is X’. Fine, but if X is considered too much for your customers then they’ll stop coming, and that’s not a sustainable business. That’s not your fault, but it is still true.

Nobody sensible is saying that most restaurants are profiteering. Especially the independents. We’re just saying that your prices are too high for what you’re selling, so we’re not buying.

Edited
Show quote history

Instead of complaining about restaurant prices complain to R Reeves for increasing ni etc and putting small businesses unprofitable
Business need to make a profit or close down.

Original poster
Mummyhokey · 04/08/2025 21:38

croydon15 · 04/08/2025 21:35

Instead of complaining about restaurant prices complain to R Reeves for increasing ni etc and putting small businesses unprofitable
Business need to make a profit or close down.

Show quote history

It’s possible to do both. But actually I think Rachel Reeves is doing fine.

OP posts:
Silverysnake · 04/08/2025 21:38

We have a couple of nice independents, and we like going out for Sunday dinner, but to save money we have dessert at home.
I only buy dessert if it is something I don’t like making, like crème brûlée or a baked cheesecake.
Takeaways are so expensive now, last Chinese takeaway was £50 for four, no extras just mains and rice.

istheresomethingishouldsay · 04/08/2025 21:39

Bleachedlevis · 04/08/2025 19:11

Agreed. Fish and chip shops are great value fast food. Or upgrade to a decent restaurant. We avoid middle of the road dining out now: the worst food at OTT prices.

Show quote history

Not anymore! Fish and chips prices are shocking around here now, and the fish has decidedly shrunk as well.

mum2jakie · 04/08/2025 21:50

FloofyBird · 03/08/2025 16:07

It's £30 for a large stuffed crust margherita pizza and they don't even take your order anymore you have to do it via your phone. I mean yes it's nice but no pizza is worth £30 imo.

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Agreed. I used to call in at Pizza Hut with the kids after going to the cinema. With a pizza costing £30 each last time, we haven't been back since!! Shame as it was a nice treat but definitely not offering good value for money- order by app and basically little/no customer service.

BooneyBeautiful · 04/08/2025 21:52

DeedlessIndeed · 03/08/2025 12:33

In my mind largr chain restaurants feel like the worst value.

You aren't getting food that relies on the particular skills of the chef, as its food designed to be easily replicated by people with moderate cooking skill. So it doesn't really feel like a great quality, beautifully crafted meal in the same way you'd get at an independent place.

And whilst all restaurants run to make money, I feel places that are run with greater input from their ultimate owners have a bigger focus on the quality of food itself. It's not the cheapest thing we could reasonably get away with serving for X price, often decided with pressure from a big corporate hospitality company for profits from the independent chains.

So to me, it feels closer to "fast food" but with prices closer to independent restaurants. All owned by corporate chains. Lose:Lose - and makes the perception of a nice enough meal feel poor value for money.

I agree. There are two excellent independent pub/restaurants near us and we much prefer going to one of them rather than a chain. We usually go out about four to six times a year. It will either be to celebrate a birthday or just to catch up with adult DC.

Charabanc · 04/08/2025 21:58

istheresomethingishouldsay · 04/08/2025 21:39

Not anymore! Fish and chips prices are shocking around here now, and the fish has decidedly shrunk as well.

Show quote history

Three years ago we were paying roughly £40 for a box of cod. Now it's £60.

Cooking oil has also gone up.

You'll see lots of pubs and restaurants closing down over the next few years. I think it's one a week closing currently, for pubs.

Charabanc · 04/08/2025 22:01

Charabanc · 04/08/2025 21:58

Three years ago we were paying roughly £40 for a box of cod. Now it's £60.

Cooking oil has also gone up.

You'll see lots of pubs and restaurants closing down over the next few years. I think it's one a week closing currently, for pubs.

Edited
Show quote history

My mistake. Roughly one pub per day is closing in the UK.

Six pubs a week shutting their doors for good | BBPA

Six pubs a week shutting their doors for good | BBPA

https://beerandpub.com/news/six-pubs-a-week-shutting-their-doors-for-good/

Obimumkinobi · 04/08/2025 22:04

We've been saying this for ages - crappy food is just so expensive in restaurants now and ruins the experience of eating out.

Desserts are absolutely terrible, particularly the solitary scoop of cheap vanilla ice cream served on a plate the size of a dustbin lid, which has been randomly 'decorated' with so much fake chocolate sauce and icing sugar that it looks like a plasterer's radio! That'll be £8 please!

buswankerbabe · 04/08/2025 22:09

We’re a family of two adults and five children, and eat out probably five times a week. Whether that’s breakfast, lunch or dinner. Yes, it’s expensive….but we enjoy the experience and not facing to shop, cook and clear up after a meal. Its worth the expense in my mind.

mum2jakie · 04/08/2025 22:12

buswankerbabe · 04/08/2025 22:09

We’re a family of two adults and five children, and eat out probably five times a week. Whether that’s breakfast, lunch or dinner. Yes, it’s expensive….but we enjoy the experience and not facing to shop, cook and clear up after a meal. Its worth the expense in my mind.

Is that a typo or do you really eat out five times a week??! If so, can you adopt me please?

BuddhaAtSea · 04/08/2025 22:14

I wouldn’t mind the price if it was actually any good, or had a great time. But it’s not, it’s nothing special. A handful of iceberg lettuce with 2 slices of cucumber is shit at the best of times, more so when you paid £ 6/7/8 for it and it doesn’t even have a dressing, you ask for a dressing and a crusty old bottle of chemicals gets plonked on the table.
So no, I don’t like eating out anymore. Last time I went it was a friend’s birthday in June. I felt as though I’ve been conned.

Mirabai · 04/08/2025 22:14

£36 today for crispy prawns, okra in tomato and garlic, a carrot and ginger juice and a fresh mint tea (ie water + mint leaves). It was delicious but really.

YB1985 · 04/08/2025 22:26

I actually think takeaways now are more extortionate than resteraunts. depending on cuisine; we dont order any rice / naan / chips etc anymore just to try to make it a bit more reasonable but its still a lot

Noseyoldcow · 04/08/2025 22:44

We too have pretty much given up dining out. We are lucky enough to be able to afford it, especially since our kids are now grown and off our hands, but the prices these days are extortionate for mediocre cooking and even more mediocre service. And even if we can find somewhere where they can actually cook and service is good, it seems that portion control is now quite the thing, and plates are now tea sized instead of dinner sized. Still, it helps with fighting the flab I suppose.

Changing the subject slightly, I read the other day that in an effort to stimulate the economy, Angela Rayner is to ease planning restrictions for cafes and pubs to make it easier for them to use disused shops and to use adjacent pavements for outdoor dining. Great. But if existing pubs and restaurants are closing (because we can’t afford to go/don't want to spend the money on their paltry offerings/ they’re running at too much of a loss) how is that going to work? And what about the competition for existing struggling businesses?

RaraRachael · 04/08/2025 23:05

Pre Covid our Indian takeaway did a Meal for 2 for £18. This is now £30.
We've started buying Tesco starters, naan breads and rice and just buying the main courses from the takeaway.

Nelliemellie · 04/08/2025 23:15

Even a basic tea and cake in a supermarket cafe is ££££. I feel Labour have decimated the economy.

DiscoBob · 04/08/2025 23:24

I expect a main course to cost around £20-30 and a starter maybe ten. I don't usually order desserts. But aways leave a tip.

Drinks ramp up the price but I always drink the house wine or just a beer or two.

There's plenty of excellent restaurants out there who more than deserve the prices and tips.

I think just stop using that chain. Quality will probably be better at an independent.

Charabanc · 04/08/2025 23:26

Noseyoldcow · 04/08/2025 22:44

We too have pretty much given up dining out. We are lucky enough to be able to afford it, especially since our kids are now grown and off our hands, but the prices these days are extortionate for mediocre cooking and even more mediocre service. And even if we can find somewhere where they can actually cook and service is good, it seems that portion control is now quite the thing, and plates are now tea sized instead of dinner sized. Still, it helps with fighting the flab I suppose.

Changing the subject slightly, I read the other day that in an effort to stimulate the economy, Angela Rayner is to ease planning restrictions for cafes and pubs to make it easier for them to use disused shops and to use adjacent pavements for outdoor dining. Great. But if existing pubs and restaurants are closing (because we can’t afford to go/don't want to spend the money on their paltry offerings/ they’re running at too much of a loss) how is that going to work? And what about the competition for existing struggling businesses?

Totally agree. "Let's allow more businesses to start a precarious business!" isn't quite the flex she thinks it is.