We made what was an increasingly rare visit to our local pub last night, quite possibly our first of 2024. I wouldn’t necessarily say it was our last visit, too, but I won’t be hurrying back. It wasn’t through any lack of quality in terms of product and service – bang average was the verdict- but it was the sheer cost of it. Going out costs a fortune these days.
I understand why the cost of drinking has gone up. Pubs are not exempt from rising costs themselves which they inevitably have to pass on in order to survive, but the fact that on a peak early Saturday evening in the pub, there were empty tables everywhere tells you something else. People are voting with their feet, which may explain how and why so many pubs have closed over the years.
I bought a round of drinks, if you can call it a round for two people, treating my partner to a large gin and tonic. It came to nearly £15 and elicited a “How much?” from me as the personable bartender presented me with the card reader. That and the best part of a tenner we spent on a couple of ales meant that two drinks each cost around £25.
As we were in an unhealthy frame of mind, our next visit was to the local chippy where we ordered two pieces of cod, one small portion of chips and a small portion of mushy peas. This came in at more than £20, so basically £45 for a short night out. And nothing, not the booze nor the food was anything better than average. A few pints and a fish supper used to be the norm. It’s very much the exception these days, at least for us.
More than 500 pubs closed in Britain last year and you just have to look round the towns and cities to see the reality for yourself. In Bristol, places like Knowle West, Patchway and Lawrence Weston have not had local pubs for some years, in some instances decades. Whereas pubs in more affluent areas and in the town centre are still doing well, thriving even, it’s not the same everywhere. You can see a pattern here. A pub night out is becoming increasingly scarce, unless you are prepared to drive, take the bus or get ripped off by a cabbie.
For £45, I could have bought four, maybe five, decent bottles of wine to be consumed over a longer period, particularly now that I am less of a regular boozer than I used to be. And frankly, having a glass of something nice at home, while watching something on telly, appeals probably more than emptying my bank account far quicker on an often inferior product.
It does appear that the humble British pub could become an endangered species. The pub is part of a narrative that is in decline these days, like watching TV at the same time as everyone else and watching a major sporting event on free-to-air TV. Our lives are becoming more individual, as if there really is no such thing as society, as the evil witch Thatcher said.
The £10 cod lot is here in the chippy, the £6/£7 pint has already arrived. How long until it’s a tenner a pint because a large G&T is already knocking on that tenner door? I don’t suppose there’s actually a specific price that will deter everyone from an evening in the boozer because many of us like the pub and we like a pint, but not everyone will be able to afford it and some of us will think, quite simply, “I’m not paying that”, at least not on a regular basis. And a pub without regular customers will soon become an empty building.
