Half pints - am I being unreasonable?

[Petrus1983]

I was in a bar/restaurant yesterday with a friend and ordered a pint - £6 - no problem. My friend wanted another pint so ordered one, I didn't really want another so ordered a half - £4.50!! A 50% mark up for half the amount of the same thing. I know it's often a little more, but 50%???

[alangla]

That’s taking the piss, £3-3.20 would be reasonable for that. £3.50 at a push. Pretty sure Wetherspoons and some of the other chains have a policy of a half being 50% of the cost of a pint.

[dickymint]

Some pubs look at it with a view that their overheads are the same per customer whatever you drink.

[Mont Blanc]

dickymint said:

Some pubs look at it with a view that their overheads are the same per customer whatever you drink.

I can see it from both sides.

If the pub sells a half instead of a pint, they still have the same costs of: Serving you the drink, washing a glass, processing the card transaction, and you taking up a seat or space in the pub.

It would be interesting to know what percentage of the pint or half-pint price goes towards the overheads and what percentage is actually paying for the beer.

[daqinggregg]

I think it’s reasonable, your choice to have a half instead of a pint. If I drink faster do I get a discount?

Fixed costs remain the same.

[48k]

Having flashbacks to the Subway 12 inch vs 2 x 6 inch subs thread

[Raymond Reddington]

I don't think I've ever seen someone under 70 years of age order half a pint and not be ridiculed

[Badda]

Petrus1983 said:

I was in a bar/restaurant yesterday with a friend and ordered a pint - £6 - no problem. My friend wanted another pint so ordered one, I didn't really want another so ordered a half - £4.50!! A 50% mark up for half the amount of the same thing. I know it's often a little more, but 50%???

Pervert

[sam.rog]

Raymond Reddington said:

I don't think I've ever seen someone under 70 years of age order half a pint and not be ridiculed

I often have a 1/2 pint…Because the my wont sell you a pint of 14% ale. So I order two.

[dickymint]

sam.rog said:

Raymond Reddington said:

I don't think I've ever seen someone under 70 years of age order half a pint and not be ridiculed

I often have a 1/2 pint…Because the my wont sell you a pint of 14% ale. So I order two.

Before the Covid shutdowns I made an effort to drink less (i'm a heavy drinker and my bar tab would be around 800 quid a month )

At that time I drank Thatchers cider and liked it very cold. I had an idea and stunned the barman in my local and ordered half a pint but in a pint glass and topped up with ice It took longer to drink and I'd top it up with another half as and when. Great result and saved a fortune over a year.

[James P]

Raymond Reddington said:

I don't think I've ever seen someone under 70 years of age order half a pint and not be ridiculed

We have beer festivals 10 months of the year. If you have 30 or so different beers to go through, halves or thirds make a full score card possible before things start running out.

[dickymint]

James P said:

Raymond Reddington said:

I don't think I've ever seen someone under 70 years of age order half a pint and not be ridiculed

We have beer festivals 10 months of the year. If you have 30 or so different beers to go through, halves or thirds make a full score card possible before things start running out.

Also if you play 'Pub Golf' it gets a bit messy drinking full pints

[Gladers01]

James P said:

Raymond Reddington said:

I don't think I've ever seen someone under 70 years of age order half a pint and not be ridiculed

We have beer festivals 10 months of the year. If you have 30 or so different beers to go through, halves or thirds make a full score card possible before things start running out.

There was a pub in Marlow a couple of years ago that sold 2 half pints of lager for less than the price of a pint of the same lager and it was weeks before they cottoned on why punters in the know were ordering so many half pints

[Sy1441]

If you ordered a half pint in Glasgow you would be asked if you're pregnant, if the answer was no you would be asked to leave the establisment.

[Tom8]

Don't be such a girl and order a pint.

[48k]

Raymond Reddington said:

I don't think I've ever seen someone under 70 years of age order half a pint and not be ridiculed

Never been to a beer festival then?

[toasty]

Mont Blanc said:

dickymint said:

Some pubs look at it with a view that their overheads are the same per customer whatever you drink.

I can see it from both sides.

If the pub sells a half instead of a pint, they still have the same costs of: Serving you the drink, washing a glass, processing the card transaction, and you taking up a seat or space in the pub.

It would be interesting to know what percentage of the pint or half-pint price goes towards the overheads and what percentage is actually paying for the beer.

If they do that then 2 pints should work out cheaper by volume than 1 pint.

[PlywoodPascal]

fixed cost (+profit) (buying glass, pouring, collecting, washing glass, cleaning tables and floor etc etc): £3
variable cost (beer) (+profit) - £3 a pint

price for 1 pint thus equals £6
price for 1/2 pint thus equals £4.50

I guess that means a glass of water could cost £3 though.

[PlywoodPascal]

Sy1441 said:

If you ordered a half pint in Glasgow you would be asked if you're pregnant, if the answer was no you would be asked to leave the establisment.

and that's just the milkmen

[paulwirral]

In my days all the serious drinkers drank half’s , always cold and fresher than a pint that gets left stood going flat .
Over charging for half’s is commonplace in Dublin .