To Wonder When Starters Got So Expensive

[AnotherBoringSaturday]

DP & I went out for dinner last night to one of local pubs.
It is a lovely country pub.
Starters were £8.50 + !!
I just had a main (£22.50) but DP has a starter as well. It was a piece of mackerel the size of my thumb (literally 2 mouthfuls) for £8.50
We did mention it to the waitress & they sent us another piece but I’m just shocked at how expensive it was.
Don’t even get me started at the price of pudding

I think if the main is 22.50 then 8.50 for the starter seems about right.

£22 for cod? Blimey. Where are you OP? Fillet steak & all the trimmings is only £19 near us (Manchester / Cheshire border).

I expect vegetarian meals to be cheaper but they rarely are.

I expected this too, until I saw an article by a chef who was saying that vegi meals often cost as much in ingredients as there is more in it. Also, the cost of ingredients is only a part of the cost.

I ate a couple of weeks ago at an outstandingly good restaurant. It was £40 a head for 3 courses which I think was excellent value given how amazing it was.

A starter will cost as much as a main course to plate up, serve, clear away, wash up, won't it? The cost of the food is only a small part of it.

It comes down to whether you just want to go out for a meal - something to fill your tummy, which means you don't have to prepare and wash up, and where there's a fairly pleasant atmosphere (hopefully - some chain pubs can feel pretty grim at certain times) or whether you are looking for a foodie experience and certain ambience. If you want the latter, you have to pay.....and yes, side dishes are often extra...that's the norm.

Know what want and what you will pay in advance......don't just turn up somewhere and not look at a menu, order drinks and sit down....because then its a bit late to relaise there aren't 2 courses and a drink included for £9.99 and the chips (sorry twice cooked wedges) are an extra £3.95 on top of the price of the piece of fish which is £24.

We have absolutely no problem paying for amazing food.
We went to Tom Kerridges ‘pub’ recently & it was the biggest over priced let down.
My biggest gripe was £8.50 for 2 small mouthfuls of mackerel.
We are in Berkshire

£30 for a starter and main in an average place is ludicrous to me, but then I don't have much to spend.

Oh no, about Tom Kerridges, I'd love to go but I live too far away.

It sounds like you were at a place that specialises in fish dishes? Are you local to the sea? The fish restaurants Ive known of have tended to be priced higher as they are actually serving fresh quality fish from local suppliers rather than frozen, so the prices are more in line with good quality steak.

OP if you have no issue paying for eating out and were okay with the main course price, I'm surprised the starter is such a sticking point for you.

the other thing I wonder is - having worked on the catering side - have you possibly seen cheaper starter prices in places where they haven't cooked them but just had a load of pre-done starters?

all the points made by posters about chefs, prep, waiting staff, premises costs...and as I say the price seems completely in proportion to the price of your main anyway?

Whoa where is this? I went to a local pub recently and had a delicious starter of 4 tiger prawns, breaded and fried with a small salad and chilli dipping sauce for £3.50!

Whoa - where was that??

"I think that's far too expensive for a pub. And £22 is quite expensive for a main I think for a pub"

It depends on the pub. I am in South Yorkshire, and all the upmarket country pubs sell food at those sort of prices.

I agree, I think the issue is that whilst prices have been rising year on year, salaries have not. Five years ago, dh and I went to a new restaurant in our village, starters where £4-£5 each, fast forward five years, my salary is unchanged (actually about £500 p.a more) but the starters are now £8-£11. Same restaurant, same starters. I think that this is a pretty common occurrence. Dh was shocked when we moved here to find out that a pint of beer was close to £5.

I expected this too, until I saw an article by a chef who was saying that vegi meals often cost as much in ingredients as there is more in it.

Applying that explanation then, a steak should be one of the cheaper items on the menu, so should a piece of fish. You'd get a lot of vegetables and spices for the same price as a steak!

Are you talking about the Hand and Flowers?

It's hardly your standard pub food if so!!!

Those prices seem high even for London standards. Its what is expect to pay at a nice gastro pub in central London with fresh good quality ingredients and proper chefs.

I eat out around once per month and agree that there are many places that charge high prices for mediocre food but many other places, particularly independents in London, where £80 will buy you a lovely meal for two.

I am in South Yorkshire, and all the upmarket country pubs sell food at those sort of prices.

I ate at the Star in Harome donkeys years ago, when it was first a thing. I thought it was bloody expensive, and nowhere near as good as it thought it was. I've just looked on its website at its menu, and it's taking the piss. I'm not based in London but eat there regularly, and I've eaten in Zone 1 in decent independent places several times this month. Yes, there were mains for more than £22, but most weren't, and I suspect I paid less per head in Z1 on a Friday or Saturday night than the OP did in a country pub. I find the love for country gastropubs hard to understand: I've never come out of one feeling that I've had a meal as good as the money implied.

We don't eat out much, maybe 3-4 times a year. But we've both noticed the rip off with Starters, desserts and coffee (or tea)
Hence we now just have main with 1 drink and leave.

If we're still hungry we call off at a supermarket on the way home and grab a huge dessert and continue eating plus the coffee too.

Sorry, but nothing infuriates me more than being ripped off...nothing!!

If the pub or chain goes bust...then so be it.

You need Little Bay

I went to lunch at Carluccio's, supposed to be one of the better chains, the other day. i was shocked at the size and quality of the mains. They were about the same size as what I'd think of as a starter. My chicken, apricot and hazelnut salad had a few scraps of chicken, not more than 2 chopped, dried apricots and a scattering of nuts on a handful of rocket and two chicory leaves. For 10.95.

No wonder they're in trouble. It was my treat for 3 other people and they didn't fare much better. I was embarrassed.

That’s ridiculously expensive. I’m in London and I reckon the best thing about living here is how much cheaper it is to eat out (so much competition here).

I visited family near Leicester and paid similar for a bog standard pub meal - so disappointed

Well, no. Steak and fish tend to cost more to purchase than say chicken or vegetables. Especially if you're buying decent cuts.

Vegetables tend to take a lot of prep and seasoning.

If you're getting a bog standard crappy veg lasagne or something then yes it should be cheaper. But a dish which is properly crafted, no.

£8. Is a lot for mackerel in a pub, but it’s not just the food you are paying for when you dine out.

Staff wages (chefs ain’t on minimum wage)
Gas, electric, water, heating, building rates, rent .
Tables and chairs, tablecloths, crockery, cutlery, glasses and breakages.
Cleaning, toilet paper, soap, dish soap for the kitchen, laundry of tablecloths and napkins.

And that’s before you factor in the cost of the ingredients.

In the city centre I can easily find starters at £10. Yours does seem pricey for a local pub. £22. for a main is similar pricing to The Ivy.

I’m not sure what you’re really asking, dining out will never be comparable to home cooking. If you don’t like paying for it, don’t eat out.

We did go to the Hand & Flowers but not last night

Oh, I knew you didn't mean the H&F last night.
Still a shame you were disappointed there though, perhaps you have the wrong Tom, I go to The Kitchin