Price of eating out rises 5% year-on-year despite recession, finds Horizons survey

1st November 2010, 11:22am

Eating out in the UK is becoming increasingly expensive as new figures show that a three-course meal in a restaurant will now set diners back £21, a rise of 5% over the past 12 months.

The price of dining out in a pub has risen even more steeply at 5.6% year-on-year - a three-course pub meal now costs an average of £15.74 with a starter at just over £4, a main course at nearly £8 and a dessert at £3.75.

A starter in a low to mid-spend restaurant now costs an average of £6.16, a main course £10.21 and a dessert £4.54, making a restaurant meal 30% more expensive than a pub meal.

Horizons' six-monthly Menurama survey, which analyses menu trends across the top 115 hotel, restaurant and pub brands, shows how prices have risen over the past six months with the cost of an average dish across all outlets now at £6.61, up 4.8% on January 2010. Overall, starters have risen 6.6% in the past six months, main courses by 4.2% and desserts by nearly 2%.

Horizons' development executive Paul Backman commented on the findings: "The impact of rising food inflation, currently at 3.8%, has become evident since January 2010 as restaurant, pub and hotel operators attempt to maintain their margins by raising menu prices. 

"Predictions are that food inflation could reach 7% as global commodity prices continue to rise and this will continue to have a knock-on impact on the price of eating out in the UK."

Related Articles:

• 30 Apr 2010 - Restaurants introduce tempting deals to boost sales
• 18 Aug 2009 - Restaurant operators urged to control costs
• 23 Jul 2009 - Canny diners find ways to eat out for less

Click here to submit a comment!

Have your say!

To comment on this article, simply enter your name and email and send us your views. Please note that your comment will appear publicly below this article once it has been processed. For enquiries please email info@eatoutmagazine.co.uk.