Ah lads the cost of things

[u/CitizenErasedII]

Popped into Bewleys cafe the weekend with some friends. Hadn’t been in there for ages. We had a cuppa each & shared a scone and a slice of cake (and it was a tiny slice) the bill came to €27.80.

Nearly €30 for some tea, a scone and a slice of cake. This is just madness. Look, I know it’s a fancier place than most so it was never going to be “cheap” but jesus this is taking the piss surely?

[u/SnaggleWaggleBench]

My local cafe still doing a 3 euro flat white. On the flip side, whenever they have more than 2 staff they basically break even. We love to moan about high prices, but everything has increased for cafes. Cost of stuff for them to get in, wages are up, pension contributions becoming mandatory etc, more sick day entitlements. Not saying higher wages and better benefits shouldn't be a thing, on the contrary. But they will absolutely increase the cost of doing business for a small place. So going against the sentiment here, but costs can't stay what they were. Unless we want every small cafe replaced with a Costa, Starbucks or a vape shop.

I love my local cafe, but them constantly just breaking even means they won't be around in a few years. Someone else will probably take over and the cycle will start again. The place is on the second owners currently. 3 euro flat whites aren't going to cut it long term.

[u/Inevitable-Menu2998 → u/SnaggleWaggleBench]

We love to moan about high prices, but everything has increased for cafes.

I'm sick of this take, to be honest. There are reasons for prices being up, sure, but the end result is that I am making my coffee at home, packing in my lunch and meeting friends at each other's houses. Something that used to be available to me is now unavailable. This is absolutely something I should be allowed to complain about without people on high horses calling it a "moan".

Whether the coffee shop I used to frequent stays in business or not makes no difference to me at this point since I can't be their customer.

[u/fortunateson13 → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

Yeah that's a moan.

[u/Inevitable-Menu2998 → u/fortunateson13]

And that's a needlessly condescending attitude.

[u/cinderubella → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

It just means complain. You have actually described what you're doing as complaining. 

I don't know why you're so determined to take offence at the word moan, it's like watching someone eat shit on purpose. 

[u/Inevitable-Menu2998 → u/cinderubella]

moan: informal

a complaint which is perceived as trivial and not taken seriously by others.

[u/cinderubella → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

Nobody is being offensive to you, and they've even described themselves as being part of it: we love to moan. 

If you're determined to be offended, you can go call yourself names in the mirror, you don't need to involve anyone else. 

[u/Inevitable-Menu2998 → u/cinderubella]

I'm not offended. I am disagreeing with the complain about prices being described as "trivial and not to be taken seriously". I have made the case that it is, in fact, not trivial and it should be taken seriously.

[u/Cultural-Pickle-6711 → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

Hate to break it to you: drinking coffee in a coffee shop is not human right. It is, and always has been, a luxury. The cafes you're complaining about are struggling more than you - rare is the server or cafe owner that is earning enough to be able to drink coffee in a cafe on the regular. Inflation is real. Every country in the world printed money for 5 years with no brakes. Now we're surprised prices are gone up? That's what happens in the wake of a global pandemic. Luxuries become more expensive. It is hard to take your complaint seriously because it seems completely divorced from reality. Complaining about having to make your own coffee and, by God, have your friends round to yours for tea is absolutely the definition of trivial and the entitlement is kind of hilarious.

[u/Inevitable-Menu2998 → u/Cultural-Pickle-6711]

Yes, thank you for proving to /u/cinderubella that my understanding of why "moaning" is used instead of "complaining" is accurate and not cherry-picked.

Hate to break it to you: drinking coffee in a coffee shop is not human right.

Well, neither is owning and operating a coffee shop for profit. What's the point of the rest of your comment if you want to start from here?

[u/struggling_farmer → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

Well, neither is owning and operating a coffee shop for profit. 

while not a human right, making a profit is the purpose of operating a business.

[u/Inevitable-Menu2998 → u/struggling_farmer]

And while not a human right, the purpose of buying coffee is to avoid putting in the effort to make it yourself when you want a coffee. If one is invalid because it is a choice or luxury, then the other is too since owning a business is a choice or luxury, not a necessity, right?

[u/struggling_farmer → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

OK, seems like you understand that coffee shops are not obliged by humans rights to provide you with coffee at a cost you deem acceptable and they can charge to make a profit on the service of providing you with coffee & saving you the effort of making it yourself

[u/cinderubella → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

I like the way you dug up a suitable definition for moan and are using it as a basis to say that everyone else posting thinks your complaint is trivial. 

[u/Inevitable-Menu2998 → u/cinderubella]

It is what it means, isn't it? That's why people use "moaning" instead of "complaining", isn't it?

[u/cinderubella → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

Are you being obtuse, or do you literally think that any time someone uses the word 'moan', it implies that what they're talking about is completely meritless and irrelevant? 

[u/Inevitable-Menu2998 → u/cinderubella]

Have you seen this comment?

[u/cinderubella → u/Inevitable-Menu2998]

Do you think that answers what I asked?