"We can't justify a £52 lunch" - AIBU to think you didn't need to?

[PropitiousJump]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckg3g11z6d8o

I found this article irritating. Middle earning families complaining they can't afford a day out, in part because of the expense of eating lunch and dinner out. A family of four in both cases.

I completely agree it's got expensive to eat out, but have they never heard of taking your own sandwiches?

And if you look at what they've eaten, they've ordered a lot of extras that have bumped up the bill.

Costa family - £52 lunch for four. If they could have done without an overpriced bag of crisps on top of their mains, and not had puddings (this was lunch, not dinner) they could have got the bill down to a more reasonable £40ish - a tenner each.

Pizza Express family - £174 dinner for four. If they cut out the starter and side orders and the adults had soft drinks instead of alcohol, they could have got the bill down to approx £109 for soft drinks, mains and a dessert each.

This isn't saying they are eating too much - it's not a diet-bashing thread - but common sense says that if you are eating in a chain place on a day out and trying to keep costs down, you don't order loads of extras and alcohol. Have a drink and a snack at home if you're still hungry. Save all the extras for an 'occasion' where eating out is the focus of the event and you're going somewhere special, not fuelling up in a chain restaurant.

AIBU?

One glass of wine costing £11 in PE is ridiculous.

And that's the point isn't it? To go out and see the true cost of not anxiously having to penny pinch. Nothing on those receipts was extravagant – they were the receipts of a family having a decent time.

I agree - we're a family of 5 and regularly do forest walks, parks, beaches, and we take lunch with us, and I certainly don't bring crab paste sandwiches! We have lovely wraps and pork pies and such in a cool box so they keep nice and fresh until we need them. If we're at the beach we might splash out with an ice-cream each which usually sets us back an extra £20.

I was raised on days out like this with the occasional day out at a theme park or other activity. The kids love it, they always look forward to the next ones. All it takes is a little forward planning and you can easily have a day out for all of you be £70 max including fuel to get there.

Why do I need to get rid of my 9 year old, fully paid off and well maintained SUV to know and recognise that things which many people used to be able to afford, can now no longer easily afford, and that's an upcoming problem for a lot of people if the trend continues?

Sure. This is true; we can all try to limit our spending. What's also true is that most UK towns and cities are only really viable as pleasant-ish places with a footfall of daytrippers etc if cafes and restaurants are used regularly. These places also create jobs. The whole economic model we exist within is collapsing because everything is too expensive. The issue is not really whether families could spend less in restaurants, which obviously they could, but how we are going to continue as a functioning society when even those with 'good' salaries are struggling hugely to afford the basics. Vacant high streets are already a problem, unemployment is already a problem — the systemic solution is not 'don't have a wine with your pizza express lunch.'

Where do you get the idea that 'should' is involved in this thinking?

Should be able to?

Why, who said, when was this said, who decided this?

Read the article!
Panorama paid for them to have an activity and a meal out. They were probably told to go to a recognisable chain.

That's also down to the downward trend of young people not going to pubs isn't it? Sure, cost of living is for sure not helping but I have read a few times that pubs are falling out of fashion.

I live near 3 pubs and there's been a remarkable difference here. We used to hear youngsters every weekend, and see them taking drugs (even on my window ledge!), getting into fights and the last few years - nothing. They are just not around like they used to be. It's rare now that we are disturbed other than by the loud music trying to attract punters, not that I miss it.

Good indies near us would cost £25 per person, not per family of 4. They don't do sandwiches either, only proper food.

You won't be able to do even that if the retail and hospitality businesses fold - both are struggling right now and costs will go up even more for the consumer and businesses will fail, meaning job losses and a higher benefits bill for tax payers. That's the point of this thread, it's not about who can do the nicest packed lunch.

The poster was talking about cafes! :-)

I really enjoy a handmade picnic – prefer it in fact. But when my twins were little, circa 2019-2023, we used to do a cafe lunch every Saturday in the park. Four hot dinners, hot drinks and pudding for the kids. Didn't even blink an eye at doing that, never even thought about it. Our income has increased 35% since 2023, and we cannot afford to do that now at all – and that's after losing nursery bills.

If anyone comes at me accusing 'leasing multiple shiny cars' or 'multiple foreign holidays a year', I will laugh them out the place.

I don’t think PE is a fancy lunch, it used to be a fairly affordable place where I knew my kids would eat the food. It would be where we popped if we were out shopping for a quick, easy and affordable pizza, it’s not that now.

Yeah I think you're right. Young folks seem very boring compared to my day! Haha. But yeah I can imagine you don't miss their antics! It's a shame for the industry as a whole. Nightclubs and small music venues as well are dropping like flies.

My last meal at PE 4 weeks ago cost £66. 2 adults, 2 kids. Kids had a starter, main and pudding, adults had a starter and main and a coffee. No alcohol but still way less than £170.

The increasing popularity of out of home parties can't be divorced from the fact that the homes we're bringing our kids up in are smaller on average than they were a couple of decades ago. And you've spoken before about the increasing cost of housing by generation, so I know you get at least part of this. Hosting at home requires space.

It's also relevant that mothers are working more hours in jobs than they used to, meaning free time to prepare the (smaller) house and party stuff is at more of a premium.

Perhaps we'd have seen fewer at home parties in, say, the 90s and 00s had these factors been in place then.

This. I make lovey packed lunches that no outlet in crappy theme parks of hell could ever compete with.For a treat we get M&S packed lunch( sandwiches and shared fruit/chocolate, always take our own water) from the garage en route. I’d rather take a picnic and get descent quality ice cream out. Quality and pleasurable experience is key for me. Why pay £££ for shite?

We had an amazing breakfast for £36 for 4 recently in a NT cafe that didn’t require entrance. Loads of food and amazing quality. We don’t do it regularly though and you appreciate it more when it’s a treat.

I would imagine that quite a lot of people you see are well off pensioners (usual caveat that not all pensioners are wealthy but as a whole they are). The only people I know who can afford home improvements/lunches out etc are those who have recently retired with paid off homes and private pensions.

That is not a dig at them. I am glad that they are out spending as the economy needs it. My mum will take me and DD out during the holidays for a day trip on the train. She pays for the train and lunch for all of us. I can't afford to pay it myself even though me and DP both work.

Spain produces wine. They buy it locally. How much do you think it costs to ship heavy bottles of wine to the UK (also think about breakages as part of this cost)?

I think someone may have suggested bringing wine over in a tanker and bottling it here ....

It's people living longer. But not necessarily in improved health. More likely simply be kept alive by a cocktail of drugs often with no real quality of life

I think get in the real world guys! We had a salary of a bit less than this 20 years ago.We would often(and still do) take a flask ,and some sarnies /crisps /apples etc .We had 2 DC then .Now often just the two of us , Still do the same at NT .Long waits for food at peak times .I am on Chemo so some things cant eat .and often the prices well hiked up.Tea and cake in afternoon cheaper and less crowded

I went for Mother's Day and even with the app and special deals - and only one glass of alcohol each for the two adults - it came to £140 for a family of four. It's roughly twice what it was two or three years ago.

Also I like Pizza Express. Some predictably snobby attitudes about chain restaurants on this thread (not from you!).

Because they used to be able to but now can't. If their salaries have stayed steady, then of course they should be able to afford what they used to be able to afford.

Exactly this. I too am a forward planner to get cheap days out wherever possible, but that does actually rely on enough people being able to attend such places to keep them going.

Just been taking a trip down memory lane. Local soft play was £8 for two children May half-term 2019. It has since be decommissioned so can't compare to modern prices, but highly likely to be double.