Bringing down the cost of restaurant bills

[KennesawNemo]

You have to broaden your view and not go with specifics.

For example, yes you are correct most places especially if they do not have a childrens menu can count on children splitting.
But most places would get annoyed if you and 3 girl friends walked in and ordered 1 meal to split. Do you see the difference?
Chocolate milk is milk if they have it fine, if you bring a 1/2 gallon of milk with you to the establishment (which I have seen) not so fine.

kids meals at many places do come with dessert but I have had customers say "well Johnny didn't eat the dessert would you deduct that off the price" and then get mad when we say no or say if we do, we will charge you ala carte for the meal which takes away the advantage.

I guarantee you that anyone who has ever owned a place has had a couple come in, one person orders and the second person pulls out a brown paper bag to eat a lunch brought from home to save money, then get upset when you tell them "outside food not allowed".

Think about why most places start establishing rules? usually it's in response to some one trying to bilk the system.

Think about some of the threads we had here on the dis when the dining plan came out. The primary question was "where can I go to order the most expensive thing"? not what you wanted to eat but where can I get the most expensive dish. Those are the same folks who are now upset that disney has removed those items and dumbed down the menu.

I think ordering the most expensive thing with dinning plan is totally different from bringing your own food/drink into the restaurant.

 

[kaytieeldr]

But it doesnt if the person wasnt getting anything but water to begin with, how does it impact the restaurant?

To change my question....which would the restaurant choose...

(1) The family gets 4 waters and spends $40 on dinner
(2) The family gets 4 waters, adds some favor packets, spends $40 on dinner
(3) The family eats at home...spends nothing at the restaurant

While you might think (2) is in poor taste, it's no different to the bottom line then (1) and adds profit that they wouldn't get if the family ate at home (3).

Glasses of water cost the restaurant money, yet restaurants don't (usually) charge for glasses of water. Ergo restaurants lose money on every glass of water provided. Many no longer just automatically bring everyone water - it has to be requested.
Restaurants sell a variety of flavored beverages to earn revenue - and ideally, ultimately, a profit.
Ordering or accepting the glass of tap water for which the restaurant charges nothing and then doctoring it with one's own bring-along flavoring to add taste is depriving the restaurant of revenue.

 

[Granny square]

If that family of 4 is getting out of the door spending only $40, then the restaurant is losing money on them, regardless. CPs (children's plates) are generally a money-loser for restaurants. The profit is in the beverage sales that are in addition to the CPs (when drinks are not included in the children's menu). CPs are under-priced in order to attract the adults to the restaurant where there is a small profit to be made on their food order. And the restaurant owner would hope to increase his profit margin by selling beverages to the patrons.

So, the answer is 3. The family stays home and spends nothing at the restaurant.

I disagree. You can easily feed a family of 4 for $40 at the average family style restaurant without ordering child plaest. Most entrees are under $10. I get upselling and was good at it, but if a restaurant can't get by on the average entree they need to raise prices.

That said, I will, next i want a tea, will ask for a bottle of water or ask for a hot pot of tea minus the tea. I can't imagine people ordering a special and then asking that the drink be subtracted. It is like ordering one and asking not to pay for the side that will cost $2. For me this is not about cost, but about options. If they have something i can or will drink i order it. Many times, though, it isn't an option.

We have lived around the world and most of the places that charge for tap water are tourist haunts. My husband and son have been in bangkok, belgium and iceland in the last week and a half and haven't been charged anywhere. On a happier thought, though they spent last evening watching the northern lights.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

I am a water drinker in the evening with my meal but I have always ordered bottled water. That way I know the establishment is still getting money plus I sometimes like sparkling like S Pelligrino or Perrier. It makes drinking water a bit more exciting! Not saying this is the right way to behave or there is anything wrong with tap water just offering an option for anybody who wants the choice of giving them some bucks.

 

[Granny square]

Lol, I love coming across voss. happy memories attached.

 

[ICF]

Glasses of water cost the restaurant money, yet restaurants don't (usually) charge for glasses of water. Ergo restaurants lose money on every glass of water provided.

The costs of a glass of tap water is likely a penny....maybe 2 at most. People are acting like the free glass of water is costing them $2. Next people will start saying that they are losing money on the ice they are putting in the drinks.


Costs of "free" stuff...be it water, peanuts, chips / salsa and the like that a place may give out to anyone is already baked into the price that is paid for other items on the menu.

So when you order an entree from the menu you've already paid for the water...even if you dont order one.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Oh yes Voss! I like that Saratoga Springs water you have over there ( I am from the UK ) what a lovely blue bottle! I must admit to knowing which brand of bottled water each restaurant around WDW has as I have my preferences lol.

 

[Granny square]

we are back in the states, and i have to either order online, or do without here! BUT I will have one everytime i hit norway in epcot! Wish they had glass bottles!

Now you have me wondering how my ginger powder would work in perrier though. I bet it would be yummy and help a bad stomach!

 

[eliza61]

I think ordering the most expensive thing with dinning plan is totally different from bringing your own food/drink into the restaurant.

It depends, the outcome can be the same.

A well run restaurant usually has 'trends", for example a family style restaurant may have lobster tail on the menu but they know exactly how many lobster talils they need to sell to see a profit and usually know how many to order each night.
Now the problem with the dining plan was that disney was only compensating restaurants a dollar amount for each ts credit. Lets say for the sake of argument it was 25 bucks. So even though the lobster tail may have cost the restuarant 50 dollars an order, disney was only giving up 25 ( I don't know the exact dollar amount, I'm just using 25 as an example.).

So lets say Yachtsmans steakhouse knows, hey on Friday night dinner we normally get 4 orders for lobster tails. Ok so if every one of those 4 orders is on the ddp, we'll lose 100 bucks on this night, no problem that's acceptable but now because folks are no longer ordering normally and everyone is ordering lobster tails to maximize their credits. Now instead of 4 lobster tails going out, Yachtsman may get 15 orders. whoa baby now what we are losing is a problem.

So most places have a few choices, they can as Granny said raised prices but in today's environment folks don't like to see prices go up, that's why when you go to a supermarket, a manufacture will make a package smaller before they raise the price. Our brains naturally rebel against paying more, they can try to make up the difference in other ways i.e. charge for water, cut staffing, use cheaper ingrediants or they can do what disney did and dumb down the menu.

I think what my main comment is that for a restaurantaur, every aspect of your business effects your bottom line.

My family would have never, ever thought to say some thing to a customer who chose to bring in crystal light for their water BUT if we saw customer, after customer, after customer doing it we would have definitely reacessed and figured out what that was doing to the bottom line. It's not only what they are doing that affects us but it's also what they are not doing (purchasing beverages) that affects the bottom line.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Oh my ginger in perrier sounds divine! I suffer terribly from stomach problems so ginger is my best friend. Plus it tastes nice. Am going to have to try that! I did try those crystal powders you guys are talking about as I thought they were a wonderful idea but I could not stop the product staining my refillable mug or making a mess in a restaurant lol. Dont know what I was doing wrong. I really like Hawaiian punch.

 

[luvmy3]

If OP wants to bring a flavor packet and sit down at the next table. I wouldnt notice, and i wouldnt care.

I don't think anyone would really notice, except the servers. We are just discussing the topic on a discussion board

 

[Granny square]

Oh my ginger in perrier sounds divine! I suffer terribly from stomach problems so ginger is my best friend. Plus it tastes nice. Am going to have to try that! I did try those crystal powders you guys are talking about as I thought they were a wonderful idea but I could not stop the product staining my refillable mug or making a mess in a restaurant lol. Dont know what I was doing wrong. I really like Hawaiian punch.

I get some great ginger powder in this wonderful asian market a couple of hours away.

I have to admit that i have a joy in messing with stuff. Following a recipe is not my thing.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

I get some great ginger powder in this wonderful asian market a couple of hours away.

I have to admit that i have a joy in messing with stuff. Following a recipe is not my thing.

Lol! Yes we have some ginger powder resources over here. Works well for migraines too.

 

[Granny square]

Lol! Yes we have some ginger powder resources over here. Works well for migraines too.

seriously? I am just on the other side of a 4 day migraine. My meds just take the edge off and by yesterday I had added excedrin and vicodan, left over from my root canal!

 

[t_daniels]

Lol! Yes we have some ginger powder resources over here. Works well for migraines too.

Are you serious?!? I get them constantly...

 

[zy144622]

seriously? I am just on the other side of a 4 day migraine. My meds just take the edge off and by yesterday I had added excedrin and vicodan, left over from my root canal!

I recommend keeping a food diary for you migraines. You may find the trigger on your own. I did and so have about 5 other people I know.

 

[kamik86]

For those saying splitting an entree between 2 people at a restaurant makes them lose money because they are taking up the space for 2 people... yeah this only works if the restaurant has a wait at the door and every table is filled. So at Disney this works. At most places around here, nope not at all. Maybe on Friday or Saturday night at prime dinner time but most of the time they have many more tables then people to sit in them. So it makes no difference if one person walked in or two.

 

[Granny square]

I recommend keeping a food diary for you migraines. You may find the trigger on your own. I did and so have about 5 other people I know.

I have fought that. I am fearful chocolate is on the list. but you are right. I need to. This weekend was horrible. Probably a combination of storms coming through and hormones. I was too sick to eat!

 

[t_daniels]

I have fought that. I am fearful chocolate is on the list. but you are right. I need to. This weekend was horrible. Probably a combination of storms coming through and hormones. I was too sick to eat!

Storms get me. Really any pressure changes...

 

[Granny square]

Storms get me. Really any pressure changes...

My son is the same way, i think. He can maintain on the excedrin though.