Restaurant prices are just ludicrous

[Mummyhokey]

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?

Oh I understand you perfectly. You think you should be entitled to a bargain and it's just not realistic!

Your choice is simply to decide not to return if you don't think it's good value.

This doesn't lessen the amount that restaurants NEED to charge though does it?!

If you can't afford it/ justify the cost, you can't.

But stop blaming restaurants for charging a) the going rate b) what they need to charge to stay afloat!

Sorry but if I'm going to a restaurant I most definitely am going for the food and I expect it to be as good or better than I could make at home.

It’s not a question of blame. You charge what you need to charge. But if you don’t improve your product, your customers won’t come back.

You aren't going for the food
That's exactly what I am going for. I expect the food to be better quality than the food I make at home. I understand why the food costs more in a restaurant than the ingredients I could buy at the supermarket.
It's bizarre to make a statement "You aren't going for the food" about a restaurant. That's the purpose of a restaurant - to serve food, preferably good quality food....

You are going for the experience, service and labour. This also costs rent, electricity and water as well as tax. Oh and don't forget advertising. Whilst trying to make a profit

Yes, I am going for the experience and the service in addition to the food. I understand it costs more because of it.
However, I can decide at what price point that is no longer worth it to me and that point has now been reached. If the restaurant needs to charge more than I can afford/want to pay then it won't be receiving my custom even if the price is justified.

Well if you go to a chain what do you expect?

If you want that level of food, go to an independent with a good reputation.

Look at restaurant ratings. And be prepared to pay even more because staff who can cook rather than ping a microwave are even more expensive than the ones you are going to.

Honestly you DO get what you pay for. And you want bargain food.

I don’t want a bargain. I want value for money. If restaurants can’t provide that, for whatever reason, then I won’t go.

Honestly £3.95 for a scoop of ice cream doesn’t sound that bad - better than the usual option of £7.50 for 3 scoops when all you want is a little something sweet.
A tub of decent ice cream from the supermarket is around £5 these days as there are less reductions to be had and you have to expect some sort of mark up.

Why don’t you go and use a voucher? My meal for five adults at the weekend was almost £50 less with a voucher? It worked out at £16 per head plus a tip.

@Mummyhokey You absolutely want bargain food, but don't want to say it. You said yesterday that £70 for two starters, two desserts and two drinks as well as four mains is your idea of a "fair price". Really? There are few places these days where you'd get all that for £70 or less, more likely at lunch, but rarely for dinner. But you were on a hiding for nothing anyway, expecting an amazing experience including great food at your local chain restaurant at a bargain price (and most people would have looked at the menu beforehand, btw).

The fact that there are few places pricing their meals at my price point doesn’t mean that my price point is unreasonable. £17 for half a starter, a main, half a dessert and half a drink is not cheap. But if the restaurants want to charge more then that’s their choice, like it’s my choice to say ‘no thanks’.

@rookiemerei only let the DDs get nice ice cream if it’s on offer. Ben and jerrys is often on for £3.50 and they can indulge.

Eating out is now as others say an upper middle class and above thing now. I balked at £30 for McDonald’s for 4 yesterday!

Really?!

She thinks four mains, two starters, two desserts and two drinks for £70 isn't bargain basement?!!!

Four mains £10 (£40)
Two starters £6 (£12)
Two desserts £5 (£10)
Two drinks £3.5 (£7)

That's honestly having a laugh.

Yep OPs choice to say no, but to then say her expectations aren't for bargain food?????

😂

Reality check.

Doors don't stay open for that.

Actually I think that is really cheap!

You don't get much change from £10 for a McDonalds meal.

An extra £8 or £9 for half a starter, half a dessert, plates, table service, and for it to be not McDonalds seems an absolute bargain.

my ex and I used to go out to eat most weekends about a decade ago, and it would be £50 for two of us to have 3 courses and a drink then at somewhere like ASK (so not fancy, but nice enough). So I wouldn't expect to feed 4 for £70 now, but as everything else has also gone up and I have much less fun money these days (no kids then!), nor can I justify it very often.

Big Mac Large meal - includes two drinks and chips x 2 £7.29 (£14.58) note large meal is best comparison in size for a meal out
Big Mac x 2 £5.09 (£10.18)
Medium fries x 2 £1.59 (£3.18)
Halloumi Fries x 2 £2.99 (£5.98) starter substitute
Oreo McFlurry x 2 £1.89 (£3.78)
Total £37.70

And that's mass production levels

So for a sit down meal which isn't a microwave jobbie including table service, washing your plates, staying on the premises for considerably longer you only want to pay another £32.30.

And you want someone who cooks to order high quality food, decent table service, a nice atmosphere and cleaned crockery.

Planet La La.

You presume that I think McDonald’s prices are acceptable. I do not. They are very high for what you’re getting.

My issue isn’t that I think it’s outrageous that a restaurant meal is twice the price of a McDonald’s meal. It’s that I think both are priced too high relative to what the product is.

You quite clearly don't have a clue then do you?

I don’t have a clue what I consider an acceptable price?

Our views on what’s an acceptable price differ. That’s fine. But in order for a restaurant to make a sale there needs to be no disagreement. It doesn’t matter whether you think I ‘have a clue’ or not. You’re flogging me a service, I think it’s too expensive, so I don’t buy it. Simple as that. You can moan all you like about how clueless I am, but I’m still not buying it.

How much things cost.

HTH

I kind of agree - Wetherspoons has become the level of what I can afford - they aren't even a cheap option anymore. It then makes you really think about the whole eating out experience.

I wouldn’t pay that for McDonald’s either I do go relatively often and get the wrap of the day £2.19 or a chicken salad with a coffee for under £4.

Op I do think you if you want vfm then you need to head outside the city centre and consider a set lunch menu / pre theatre menu. They do still fleece you on drinks but I’ve had some amazing meals at under £20 a head seasonal ingredients / well cooked / presented.

I'm not suggesting you pay prices beyond your "personal pain barrier" out of the goodness of your heart.

I'm pointing out that if everyone stuck to 'we only eat out on for treats, or on holiday or at Christmas," there won't be anywhere to eat out on the rare occasions you're willing or need to pay for it, because the holiday or Christmas places can't survive only earning for 1 or 3 months of the year. Doesn't matter if they're cheap chains or nicer places people are willing to pay more for but only go half as often - if they aren't getting sufficient regular business they'll close.

That's what will happen then isn't it?
Prices are beyond many people's personal pain barriers so there will be less business, reataurants competing for fewer customers and the sector will shrink.

I know that's what will happen, exactly as you describe it. I still don't want to pay the prices. And if everyone decides not to eat out as much there won't be any/as many restaurants. I don't really understand what point you are making. You're just stating the obvious and I'm not sure what you want people to do about it.

So be it.

Thats the price of capitalism and trickle down politics.

Im certainly nif going to frequent just to try to keep them open when I cang afford it.

I personally feel restaurants have been saddled with too many additional costs over a very short time span and the cost of living has bitten customers hard so it’s a perfect storm. Restaurants and Pubs are not unreasonable to want to make a decent profit and customers are not unreasonable to not want to pay considerably more for the same or less when they have less disposable income.
I feel this is it in a nutshell.