KEY POINTS:
Restaurant prices may increase as the effects of a wage rise for hospital kitchen staff and cleaners flows to the hospitality industry.
In the year to June, restaurant prices rose by 3 per cent. This was faster than the overall 2 per cent rise in the consumers price index, however the Restaurant Association of New Zealand says this is lower than increases of 9.3 per cent for fruit and vegetables, 9 per cent for meat, fish and poultry and 6.9 per cent for electricity.
Has eating out become too expensive? Here is an earlier selection of Your Views:
Stanley (Torbay)
Maybe the restaurants can absorb the pay rise cost from the profit they make out of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, or is that wishful thinking on my part? Whatever you drink, be it mineral water or wine, it will cost you twice the supermarket price. Is the Commerce Commission able to act on this or is excess profiteering not within its jurisdiction.
Dave
If you think restaurant prices in Auckland are a bit steep, try a few menus in the provinces (i.e. South of the Bombay hills). A lack of volume or competition often results in inflated prices without little extras such as quality food and service. As a visitor, I am usually happily surprised at the high standard and value from Auckland Restaurants.
Chris
As a well adjusted immigrant there is really only one thing which I really miss, and that is the food from my old country. Oh, what would I give if I could just fly back to have a decent aged fillet or rump steak smothered with a thick pepper or mushroom sauce, a proper cut of schnitzel, properly prepared and glazed spare ribs. The restaurants here are expensive, but that isn't the cost which puts me off, it is the quality and taste of the food. The veges are utterly tasteless, and don't ask for a well done steak, I'm yet to find a restaurant who can prepare it well done without totally cremating it on the outside. The main problem is this nouveau "gourmet" idea, somehow the restaurants are confused, they think presenting me with an expensive "flower arrangement" on a plate constitutes a good meal. For my money I want good tasting food, not good looking food. So, the only way to eat what I really want is to cook at home.
Rob
Auckland has a wonderful array of cheap and tasty ethnic eating options. We lived in London for almost 5 years and although it probably has an even wider range of ethnic foods it doesn't even come close to Auckland in terms of quality. My wife and I regularly eat out for $15 between us at any one of the hundreds of Chinese/Korean/Vietnamese etc places around town. Often not the most atmospheric of establishments but who cares when the food is, in the vast majority of cases (but, to be fair, not in all cases) of exceptional quality and very often as good as its country of origin (and I've lived in and visited many many countries). A group of nine of us went out to a noodle house in Balmoral recently, all ate to their hearts were content and all loved the food (steamed fish, dumplings, pork, Chinese veges, eggplant etc). And the bill - $96($10 each). Forget about the stodgy, overpriced steak places. Do yourselves a favour and checkout your local noodle bars. Head to the ones that are full of people (they're popular for a reason) and don't be put off if you try one and don't like it, there are hundreds more to choose from. Get adventurous Kiwis!
Ms Auckland
Not so sure that Auckland restaurants are so overpriced as some people think. See, back in 1972-73 I once paid $45 for dinner for two at a then rather pricey North Shore restaurant. Although it was a distinctive gourmet restaurant back then (since closed down, sadly so) and the food absolutely terrific $45 was a sheer fortune back in 1972-73, when many people only got around $1 an hour. Wages have since increased a bit though today you can still get a dinner for two for $45 or less. Mind you, it's always wise to pick a restaurant where you can afford the food. Or maybe some people enjoy moaning and groaning no matter fish'n'ships or fillet steak and crepe suzettes.
Ekboks bro
I agree with ekbok, 50 cents never bought me a egg burger and I feel it never will. Get me up the manager, I not want to talk about egg burgers any more cos the fatty ate them.
Thrash Cardiom
Yes, the cost of eating out is too high most of the time. I say this because most of the time I feel as though the food I am eating is below my own standard of cooking. I don't mind paying if the meal is of a high standard but most restaurants I have been to are vastly over rated. The few that are good though I am happy to return to. I also object to paying $80 for more for a $40 bottle of wine.
Tim (London)
I'm a kiwi and I've lived in NZ 10 of the last 20 years. I returned to London for good after the last election in NZ. Here in London I read these articles with a bit of bemusement at some of the comments. The bottom line Kiwis need to accept is this. New Zealand charges first world prices for everything, yet salary and wages are second world. In NZ, there is a cartel in the mobile phone industry with only two players. The same in the energy sector with a few more players. Oil companies move in unison to gouge the market and supermarket are pricing goods at extraordinary prices. In London I can but a bottle of Oyster Bay for A3;5, a kilo leg of New Zealand Lamb for A3;5.50, yet those NZ products are 3-4 times more in NZ$ in NZ. Interest rates are 250 basis points higher than any other country. Why? I would suggest to all of you writing in, you should get out and feel lucky to go with the shirt on your back. Ultra Socialists will not be satisfied until everyone is knocked down to the same basic common denominator!
London
Eating out in Auckland is overpriced already considering the standards of the meals served. A good restaurant needs to start with quality ingredients and talented chefs. Why would anyone order a sirloin steak in a restaurant when they can prepare a quality fillet themselves at home? It's not the prices that put people off, but the quality and originality of the food!
Peter (Tauranga)
Wine and beer at bars & restaurants grossly overpriced. Food price high. Places that then charge extra for veggies etc instead of including them as part of the meal cost by me just get avoided. I mean to say when you order a meal of the day & a paltry piece of meat or fish turns up with no veggies etc is that a meal? I think not! Such places that charge $30 plus then want to gouge an extra $5 for potatoes & another $5 for greens can in my opinion just get stuffed. I certainly won't go there. Having just come back from 3 weeks in Vietnam where 5 people could dine & drink extremely well for less than $30 NZ all up for everybody I feel we are not served well. But then they have to make a living. No social welfare bludgers there, work or starve. Lessons there we could learn!
Ekbok (Kura)
What happened there then? I have 50 cents in my pocket and that wouldn't even buy me an egg burger with extra cheese. In fact, I don't think 50cents would have bought an egg burger ever. So tell me this, what happened there then? Last time I checked in my fridge, there were no egg burgers. What happened there then? To be quite honest, I don't even remember the last time I had an egg burger. What happened there then?
Alan Wilkinson
No, eating out is not over-priced because the food business is very competitive. There are excellent options in all price ranges all over NZ. Just do your research first.
Japan
Amazingly it's cheaper to eat out in Tokyo than in New Zealand. There are many family restaurants that cost $20nz for 2 adults and 2 kids (I'm sure this would be impossible to find in NZ these days? Overall the cost of food etc also is cheaper in Japan (except fruit and some veggies).
Consumers Will Continue To Dictate By Expectation!
"Tony Adcock of the Harbourside restaurant in Auckland's Ferry Building said he was looking at both raising prices and cutting the amount and quality of food on each plate to cut costs."
Consumers will continue to dictate price and quality by having expectations, and were they are not met simply means that competing restaurants will flourish!
Sonia
After working a few years back in a Cafe as 19-year-old for a meagre $9.50 an hour I can sympathise with these people. Dining out (even in Auckland) is not that expensive depending on where you go. Obviously, if you eat out every night then it is expensive, it should only be done occasionally. My local is the best Italian food I have ever had and it only costs $18-$20 for a main and the customer service is excellent. I think one of the greater costs is that of alcohol, going to a BYO restaurant can easily combat this. I'm quite happy to pay for a good meal, especially if it means the people that work behind the scenes get a decent share of it.
James (Wellington)
Restaurant owners treat their staff appallingly and pay them peanuts, often relying on illegal labour and paying under the table to get around minimum wage laws, which in turn lowers the wages of everyone. These restaurant owners are not about to start paying their staff $14.25 an hour, despite what they say, and in all likelihood they'll do everything they can to squeeze wages even lower. It's about time retail staff organised like hospital staff have done and fought for their fair share. Low paid workers need to stand up for themselves and we need to support them. I'm sick of seeing my mates leaving to Australia for higher wages.
Rhea
Restaurants are full of people working to make ends meet. Professional chefs who are supporting their families, waitresses paying their way through uni, kitchen hands trying to earn enough to pay rent. (I'm sure we've all been there at some stage or another) These people deserve a decent wage, and I like a night out occasionally.
Bruce
I dine out a lot due to lifestyle and travel. While I think the price charged for wine is far too dear for what it is, the price charged for food is okay. The price for menu items has within it a component to cover overheads and the salaries of the cooks etc. It's interesting to note that those who call loudest for a fair and equitable NZ are also those who think the skills and flair put into a menu ought to be for free. Who works for nothing?
Harry L (Waitakere City)
When the public holiday surcharge first went on I remember going to one of those bars at the Viaduct and paying $16 for two Heinekens. I guess this move presents another opportunity for some unscrupulous operators to engage in a little more price gouging.
Pete
I've never heard such bleating and acrimony expressed because their representative fears that they may actually be forced to pay wages which approach something liveable. Restaurant staff normally do fantastic work in this country only to receive the bare minimum in compensation - under the table wages, "training rate" pay (even though no training is given,) and casual contract work where managers demand that employees be able to work at a few hours' notice are all common in the restaurant industry. And when the Holidays Act was changed the Restaurant Association promoted and condoned a "surcharge" on public holidays - 5 per cent at first, but 15 per cent is not uncommon in recent times. "Covert, underhanded and sneaky deals" are more the domain of restaurant management rather than the Government. Recognise the sterling work that your employees do and pay them a wage commensurate with the fact that your staff are your finest assets. Adapt or die - but don't blame the Government for indirectly forcing you to do what any decent employer would do voluntarily.
Andrew Atkin
Generally the service industry is too cheap to the consumer, because the staff is not paid enough for what they do. The result is high demand and high supply (as a result of low cost labour), relative to what it should be. The only reason why we have such a large service industry today is because the government has saturated the economy with too many low-skilled immigrants that can't do much else - so they accept the unfair (arguably) pay-rates because they don't have much other choice. In my opinion, our over-sized service industry is, ultimately, just an expression of an unfair economy - a "distortion" if you like. I would like to see a "correction" begin.
Live Life
Depends where you go to dine out and what you expect from the experience. Our local fishing club provides an excellent basic menu, good portion sizes and great value for money. Family restaurants like valentines or breakers also are budget friendly. We dine out once every two or three months and certainly avoid the expensive inner city restaurants that cost almost a week's wages just for a night out with friends.
Former Chef
Yet again restaurateurs crying "Poor us" whilst ripping off their staff. After 10 years in the industry I got out and have never been happier. I put this down solely to the way I was treated and taken advantage of by restaurant owners and managers. Despite having almost a decade of experience including some in internationally renowned kitchens I was being paid (after having to threaten to leave in order to get them to pay what they had agreed to) the same as an apprentice mechanic. If there is a staff shortage in hospitality I place it squarely at the feet of the owners and managers who have taken advantage of the hard-working nature of most hospitality staff for decades. Long hours, no breaks, high pressure, no job security, poor compensation and being expected to at a restaurant's beck and call 24-hours a day is not the way to retain staff. Unfortunately these attitudes and behaviours seem to be the rule rather than the exception.
Rick
If anyone actually believes that cost of living is only increasing by 2 per cent per year as put out by the ministry of misinformation then they deserved to be fleeced at every turn.
Arron
I agree with M Swan re: the public holiday surcharges and refuse to eat at any establishment that charges such a fee. Public holidays do not increase your rent charges or input cost charges such as cost of ingredients, power etc. The increased patronage would more than cover any increase in staff costs for the day and the surcharge is pure profit. But as long as gullible idiots keep paying this ridiculous charge, restaurants will keep charging it.
Terry
Restaurant meals in most places are overpriced already considering the quality of food that is being served. There is more second grade meat(cow) being used in the industry than ever before and with the dairy boom it will only increase. I have been involved in one way or another in the industry for 30 years, I personally used to dine out twice a week but now I might dine out once a month and that has nothing to do with price, when I go out I expect to get a better meal than I can make at home. Maybe if the used quality products people wouldn't mind the price they have to pay, after all the price is the first thing you forget if the experience was good.
Stephanie
I regard myself as a good cook, covering a range of cooking styles. I buy the best quality meat, fish and vegetables - mainly local fresh. Why would I dine out to be served either by amount, taste, presentation food that does not meet my own cooking standards and pay an exorbitant amount to do so? Dining is about food - the service, wine and ambience cannot in my opinion make up for inadequacies in the first essential. Last Friday night we ate out north of Auckland, six diners who were all very disappointed with their meals. We will not return to the restaurant.
Kirsten (Auckland)
Eating out? To me that is a picnic outdoors. Not going to a restaurant and actually dining. Yes, it's too expensive.
M Swan
How ridiculous! Given how many staff working in restaurants and cafes are working under the table and are therefore not fully protected by NZ industrial laws these comments are a joke. 15 per cent surcharges on public holidays when there's only 1 staff member in the establishment who is not a casual worker is all about squeezing as much out of their patrons as they can using the time and a half pay rate and day in lieu as an excuse. Casual staff being paid under the table do not receive the extra pay or the day in lieu so remind me again how it is that it costs them more money than usual to be open on those days. It all flows over into their day to day treatment of casual workers.
Barry
I had no idea they could actually get any higher than they are now! Auckland is a ridiculously expensive city to dine out in. And on top of that the portions are usually miniscule.