Ridiculous Markups

[Eve]

I went to a café (think city more homely boho chic kind of place) the other day with some friends and fancied something nice and cool to drink and ordered a ginger beer.

The guy serving us came back and gave me a glass with ice and a normal size can of ginger beer (or ginger beer flavour drink apparently as one friend pointed out).

£2.20!!!! Thankfully it hadn't been opened so I asked them to change it for a different drink. I'm sure they sell those cans (or similar) in a local discount shop for about 25p each!

Would you have paid it and have you ever been daftly overcharged.

[society]

I don't waste money. I would only pay the exorbitant price for something if it was a matter of life and death, or to make a kid happy.

And I would have done what you did, exchanged the drink.

[carrust]

A mate of mine went to Zurich for his birthday & got charged £64-00 for 2 hot chocoltes & 2 cakes! He's a Scottish accountant & he's still having councelling:-)

[Eve]

Glad it's not just me Society :)

Ouch carrust! I remember reading an article the other week about an ice cream place in Rome with ridiculous charges and "tourist" add ons being levied.

I remember getting a bit confused with the Czech exchange rate and paying more than we realised for some apple pie and a couple of drinks in Prague but nowhere near that bad!

[Eve]

Ah, there is it -

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2321181/British-tourists-charged-54-ice-creams-receive-apology-invited-Rome-mayor.html?ITO=1490

£54 for four ice creams - take away too!

[AlwaysConfused]

I was charge £1.93 for 2 litres milk this morning. I thought it was extortionate. I only paid the money because I needed it immediately. I only pay a quid in the supermarket. I find convenience store decidedly inconvenient given the prices they charge!

[joggerjayne]

Hmmm ... there are arguments both ways.

Maybe we're not really paying for the drinks. We are paying to occupy space in the owner's café.

If the owner didn't give you a drink at all, and just said you could sit in his coty centre premises and relax for an hour for £2.20, it would seem like fairly good value.

[Eve]

I get your point Jayne though I'd happily pay that much for a coffee, just not a can :)

[Eve]

I'd love to go to Rome though I wouldn't be paying silly price for an ice cream, no :)

I said it was a boho kind of café in a city centre. I've also waitressed a lot in the past and worked in kitchens and have a bit of an idea as to mark up. It seems strange to me though why mark up something like that so obviously - if they had just poured it into a glass with a lot of ice, who would know really, I was surprised they brought the can out like they did.

[silliemillie]

AlwaysConfused - Convenience stores cannot even buy a lot of products for the prices places like Tesco sell them for.
DIL worked in a trade warehouse & the mark up is not huge.

Thats why some places like Tesco limit how many of a certain product you can buy cos the small stores where buying stuff from Tescos cos it was cheaper than the warehouse.

[joggerjayne]

I agree with Eve on that point.

I think you could reasonably expect the owner to open the can and bring it in a glass.