Finding it increasingly difficult to justify eating out at pubs etc

[JupiterJa]

This is something I’ve always enjoyed doing, but I just find the financial outlay to be hard to justify now. A fairly average meal is now usually between £17-£20 (say a burger, or fish and chips) with a pint or glass of wine usually over £6. I just don’t feel the experience warrants the outlay now, especially midweek, so these trips are becoming rarer and rarer.

Not so long ago £15 would comfortably cover everything and I felt that was good value.

Does anyone else find themselves making less frequent visits now?

Yes absolutely agree. Used to go for a pub lunch about once a week after a long walk. Now it's maybe once a month but might rein that in as well as each time I feel it's just too much and iften disappointing.

The other say DH, toddler and I had 2 meals in a pub, nothing spectacular just fish and chips and a prawn taco dish that was underwhelming and seemed to have low quality ingredients. Fishcand chips shared with toddler!
Pint, squash and a small coke.

£47!!

It's not just that it's so expensive but also the quality has gone down a lot in most places. I understand the increased cost but just doesn't seem worth it mostly..

Went out on Sunday for a birthday and we were saying exactly the same afterwards. The food wasn't even great! And one thing I've noticed is that everywhere suddenly has stellar reviews, all 4 and 5 stars (mostly from 'new users'). Funny that.

The NI contributions have been crippling. Especially as with lots of part time workers the threshold lowering has entered in huge numbers of staff to the pool.

The service charge thing I actually hate personally (despite needing it to actually survive - without it I earn £13 an hour and that's as a supervisor), but if everyone stopped paying it all that would happen is food prices would go up accordingly. You can't keep staff on those wages - we need the service charge to make it worth it. If it disappeared overnight restaurants would have to increase their hourly rates and put prices up accordingly. Id actually prefer that as I think my employer ought to pay me my worth, rather than expecting customers to choose whether I get paid or not (we pool tips as well so someone else's service impacts my pay). Also maternity pay does not include service charge, and it's tricky to use it as evidence for getting a mortgage etc. Its better for everyone to simply have the employer pay that rate and pass the cost along.

I agree about COL crisis. I don't see how it can be affecting the majority when I see people daily dropping the cash they do (I don't work in an upscale place - it's a chain suited for families just very expensive!).

The upside is that when you do go out you tend to enjoy it more. I'm going to a really good Italian restaurant next month for my birthday and looking forward to it. It's more of a real treat now.

I've never eaten out often because I can have better food at home for far less. When I have gone out to eat, I've often been disappointed and shocked by how much it costs.

100%, we have been to Portugal recently where two nice mains, 2 children's meals and 2 alcoholic drinks have been costing around 50 euros. Huge difference to back home. Meals all lovely quality in good locations next to beach or sea etc.

At home recently paid £11 for a small take away fish and chips!!!

I guess it depends on what you like to spend your money on

We try and support our local pub but it's more likely once a month or every two months for a Sunday dinner. Other than that it's just a birthday sort of thing really.

I've noticed the food quality steadily declining as the prices rise.

We used to go out a few times a week. This year I think the last time we went out for food was in January.

We can just make far nicer at home, and not feel ripped off.

I agree abd am quite sad about it. We are financially comfortable but not big spenders, we enjoy a pub lunch though.

Some lovely pubs in my village, good quality home cooked food. The prices shot up and I jus couldn't justify £25 for a basic meal. Then the price fell a bit but the quality plummeted.

I do realise they're probably struggling, ingredients, wages, bills have all gone up. I not blaming the pub but to me it's poor value for the experience. We now eat lunch at home and nip over for a lunchtime drink if it's a nice day.

OH went to local chippy the other week. One small cod, one chips, one mushy peas, one gravy. He's still muttering at the cost. Our Chinese takeaway prices have doubled, portions shrunk, ingredients lessened. The overheads are so high now.

London is terrible for serving little portions in pubs for £20 a throw, and puddings at £8. My daughter turned 18 last year and only goes to pubs for special occasions with her mates because it's too expensive to do regularly.. When I was her age getting pissed on £30 was the norm. They do go to Spoons to make the money go a bit further.

Up to about five years ago (post Brexit but pre-Covid) we would go to the pub for drinks and a roast every couple of weeks but now...I can't remember the last time I've been...

Just been on holiday in the UK for a week and have eaten out at pubs which we don't often do. The food was expensive on average £17.50 for a plate of pasta. Absolutely delicious but we won't be eating out for a while now.

Agreed completely, I think we went out for one meal last year and haven't eaten out at all this year. I can make nicer at home and the quality is so poor. It does make me sad though I used to love going out to eat but nowhere near us does a good roast!

We've gone back to the 'old days', taking a flask and filled rolls when we go out for the day!

The last time we went out for a meal my fish portion was very small. Not worth it.

People seem to have money for other things though

Yep agree! Took my teens out for my birthday meal god it was awful ! 80£ × what a waste....

Well yes, everyone chooses what they feel it is worth spending money on.
We can afford to eat out, we just choose not to very often (nowadays, we used to eat out a lot) because we no longer enjoy it enough for it to be worth our while. Quality has decreased while prices have increased.
We still spend money on things that we do feel are worth it.

Agree totally. I feel extra ripped off as a vegetarian, having to pay a huge amount for some lousy risotto (at best) or some dry vegetable bake, or a chickpea burger bought from an industrial supplier. I get a drink and some chips if I absolutely have to.

same for us.

I think my biggest rip off was in Bills Restaurant where they charged £15 for a 'cauliflower steak'... basically a SLICE of cauliflower with some sauce and a few veg, good god was really taking the P!

Thats probably because it literally was a ready meal.

Also depends on where you are…I’m in Lyme Regis on hols at present where a very underwhelming pasty is a fiver, an (admittedly) delicious ice-cream £4…..really expensive, I feel like a “fleeced” tourist. These things are so much cheaper at home (I live in a land locked county and a good pasty in the village post office is about £2.50)

We've given up eating in "ordinary" pubs and chain restaurants for this reason.

We now only go to gastropubs or restaurants with good reputations or Michelin stars.

It means, of course, that we now go out for a meal once or maybe twice a year rather than twice a month (or more) but at least we get something worth paying for.

Plus, a meal out now becomes a "special event" and something we look forward to.

Agree totally.

I know I can make good cakes, get my food up to a good mid range restaurant standard. So anything that isn't complicated or exquisite is not worth it. Either that or absolute convenience food like a mcdonalds.

And yy to bad or sullen service ... I was at a £££ restaurant on a date and the waitress (unprompted) asked my date to tip in cash as they didn't get all their card tips.

I've worked in the service industry myself so hardly being snobby but it didn't make for a refined experience! (My date didn't have cash so it just made things awkward).

A lot of places seem to be prioritising their Deliveroo or Uber contracts too....I've sat waiting whilst they fill up those orders.

I stopped for a lunch at the weekend on my way to an art gallery - £11 for a meal and drink.

Some of the local newsagents do a samosa for £1.50 so I'll get one of those next time I'm in the area.