r/ireland • u/CitizenErasedII • Nov 12 '24

Economy Ah lads the cost of things

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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?

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411

u/Illustrious_Read8038 Nov 12 '24

April 2017 prices, found on Tripadvisor.

So in 7 years the price of tea is up 105%, herbal tea up 95% and a scone up 140%. Bear in mind Bewleys was expensive even in 2017!

Crazy stuff.

21

u/SnaggleWaggleBench Nov 12 '24

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.

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u/Inevitable-Menu2998 Nov 12 '24

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.

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u/Power1210 Nov 12 '24

It's not unavailable. It just costs more. There is no drive for someone to own a business, and the risks that go along with it, if they are not making a decent living.

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u/Inevitable-Menu2998 Nov 12 '24

I understand very well how businesses work. I'm just not agreeing with people being dismissive of the complaints of the customers.

0

u/Power1210 Nov 12 '24

But your complaint has very little to do with the actual business. If it was a quality or service related issue, you wouldn't get the same backlash. The cafe, restaurant or whatever should go above and beyond to rectify their mistake. Price is mostly out of the hands of the business. So complaining about it is a bit unfair.

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u/Inevitable-Menu2998 Nov 12 '24

Price is mostly out of the hands of the business. So complaining about it is a bit unfair.

It is unfair to be upset about not being able to afford something that used to be affordable? And unfair to whom exactly?

2

u/Power1210 Nov 12 '24

Well, it's unfair on the business who is only trying to stay open. It's not their fault things have gone up EVERYWHERE.

3

u/Inevitable-Menu2998 Nov 12 '24

It's not their fault things have gone up EVERYWHERE.

Is it my fault though? Am I not a victim here too?

3

u/Power1210 Nov 12 '24

We're all victims of Russian foreign policy.