Guinness should not cost more in Dublin than New York
By: The Yank | Published Wednesday, August 24, 2011, 2:32 PM | Updated Friday, September 9, 2011, 10:21 PM
Two weeks ago, after taking a big sip from his pint of Guinness President Obama declared that we were "keeping all the best stuff here." It was a point on which everyone apparently agreed.
Imagine how much more interesting Obama's visit would have been if he had done a double-take on being told what his pint cost. I don't know what they charge in Ollie Hayes's pub in Moneygall, but probably around €4 ($5.75) a pint. The last pint I had in Dublin I paid €4.35 ($6.25) for it.
Last week I found myself in a bar on Broadway in the Bronx with a few friends. I ordered three pints and did a quick calculation in my head. I figured the pints would be around $8 each and had $25 in my hand.
I couldn't believe it when the bartender asked for $12. I actually said, "No, I'm paying for all three." She confirmed that $12 was the right price, that the pints were $4 each (€2.80).
It was a Happy Hour special, she explained, the regular price for a pint of Guinness is $5. That's not quite €3.50. I doubt you can find a pint of Guinness for €3.50 anywhere in Ireland.
How can this be? I've often acknowledged that the taste of Guinness is better here, suggesting that it doesn't travel well. No matter how it's traveling it cannot be traveling more cheaply to the Bronx than it is to Dublin's pubs.
Every week or so there are articles in the newspapers about how the
pubs are struggling to make ends meet. There are all sorts of reasons pubs are having trouble surviving, but I doubt an excessive profit margin is one of the problems. I doubt they're taking a significantly bigger share on a pint than are their Bronx counter-parts.
That leaves only the taxes. The tax on a pint of Guinness must be far greater here than it is in New York. I suppose it's not entirely a bad thing - there are definitely too many people here who drink too much.
However the government promotes the pub as an essential aspect of our tourism offering. If the pub was not so important we would not have seen President Obama having a pint in one.
So if the government wants pubs to - at a minimum - be profitable concerns, to be open for tourists who have heard about the good times a pub can provide, surely they should do what they can to ensure that the price of a pint of Guinness is not higher in Dublin than it is 3,000 miles from here.
The price of a pint of Guinness is an easy to compare cost. Every tourist who pays more for one here than he does in New York or Boston or Chicago (maybe even at the President's local) will be struck by a simple thought: "Ireland is expensive." That's counter-productive.
There may be
ten reasons why Guinness tastes better in Ireland than elsewhere, but the price sure ain't one of them. We have to fix that so that tourists can enjoy the excellent taste without the bitter aftertaste of knowing they overpaid for that pint.
14 Comments
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.TheYank | Aug 15, 2011, 11:01 AM EDT
nanny2sorli,
Sorry to be so late responding, but the glasses used in the Bronx are the same glasses they use here. They're "imperial" pints, not American pints. So, the volume is exactly the same.
nanny2sorli | Jul 04, 2011, 10:55 AM EDT
You also haven't factored in that a pint in New York is only 16 oz, whereas in Ireland it would be 20!
Ajreaper | Jun 15, 2011, 02:15 PM EDT
This is just me but if I am going to get myself across the Atlantic and into Ireland I am going to be sure to have enough money to do the things I want to do. I make reservations 6 months or more out- giving me time to save additional money. You can also book day tours and the like during that time- booking one activity or tour a month means 6 things already paid for before I ever step on the plane. I also exchange money often ion advance of my trip- if I have an extra $50 or $100 dollars ar the end of the month I go to the bank and purchase Euros or Pounds. Maybe its just me but I ain't going to travel thousands of miles and not be able to do and see the things I want to- to include a pint when and where I'd like one.
jacersagain | Jun 14, 2011, 08:39 PM EDT
It's hard going paying for drinks if you are a tourist on a shoe-string budget. There's absolutely no charge for breathing Ireland's fresh air. At the moment, that is... Irish Craic is always free though.
lindaburke | Jun 14, 2011, 05:53 PM EDT
I agree that it is way too expensive in Ireland. I also drink Guinness at the Irish American Club, East Side @ $3 for an Imperial pint. At that price we still make money and it keeps our members happy! I visit Ireland every year and each year it gets more expensive. The only reasonable prices this year were the hotels. Food is also quite expensive whether in restaurants or pubs. Hard going if you are a tourist.
HalfMayo | Jun 14, 2011, 03:27 PM EDT
Least expensive pint @ Irish American Club - East Side, Inc. in Euclid, Ohio for $3.00. Best was only a half in Killarney @ The Southern Hotel, it was also my first!
Ajreaper | Jun 14, 2011, 02:27 PM EDT
I live in Arizona, which is certainly a good long ways from the Bronx and a very long way from Dublin and I have never paid more then $5 for a pint of Guinness locally. Granted I make use of happy hour but I believe the only place in the States I have ever paid more then $5 for a pint was in an airport.
RedBranch | Jun 14, 2011, 01:54 PM EDT
I don't know, but it looks to me like he's almost holding his nose in the photo. Prices: Davy Byrne's Dublin E5 Keogh's Oughterard E2.50 for Beamish ASDA own brand larger 25p You takes your choices.
TheYank | Jun 14, 2011, 12:14 PM EDT
MayotoMidtown
Yeah, you're right. I forgot about the labor costs here.
And tipping. You know I almost forgot. Here you struggle to make sure you collect every last coin. Not in NY, obviously. I left $1 for every pint. I actually checked with one my friends to be sure.
We also threw a couple of extra bucks on the bar as we were going.
MayotoMidtown | Jun 14, 2011, 10:08 AM EDT
If it's any consolation, Yank, a pint in Manhattan will usually run you $7-8 (€4.85-5.50), although $4.50-5 is not unheard of in NJ and the outer boroughs. Wouldn't the minimum wage for bartenders/servers in Ireland be a big reason for the cost difference? I don't think you'll find too many in the US getting $11 an hour, which I understand is the going rate in Ireland. They make up the difference on tips here. So I would hope you tip better than $1 for three pints.
MacGiobuinR | Jun 13, 2011, 09:03 PM EDT
The taste difference could also be do to ability to serve correctly and or to be able to drink correctly. I have had the black stuff in Ireland and here in the States and there is a difference in taste and price. Therefore I will pay the higher price where it tastes the best. And we will discuss the world problems while we sip a pint, but I don't think the price of a Guinness will come into the conversation. Slainte!
mamaginnty | Jun 13, 2011, 06:41 PM EDT
Hope the Geejit doesn't drop in and turn the pint sour.
mamaginnty | Jun 13, 2011, 06:37 PM EDT
Some pubs do go overboard, but as you say Jasursagain pubs have high overheads but the government make more on the pint than the publican. In the village pub it would not be as expensive. My sons like the odd drink in the pub, but are doing the home thing more now. A few friends, a few pints, and seem to enjoy the craic more they do not get drunk, as drink is limited in a house. Maybe I am helping a little by making the sandwiches and letting them sing the roof off with the irish R. songs, no neighbours near enough to complain. 6 mates, 6 saturday nights, six homes turn about. Getting more like the old days again. The Ould fella gets into his wheelchair that night but the only thing he can play is the bodhran. Gets them stamping the feet though. Oh Sorry...about the pint, pub price around here anything from 3.90 - 4.10euro is dear enough. No matter what price the pint is in America, it will never taste as good as when sitting on the high stool in an irish pub.
jacersagain | Jun 13, 2011, 03:48 PM EDT
Yank, you have to remember that over the past decade or so, Pubs in Dublin exchanged hands at astronomical prices. Publicans are recouping that through higher charges to their customers for pints and spirits. There is a high tax content in the price of a drink, as you suspect. However, now that Guinness has introduced the take-home pint in cans, coupled with the tough drink-driving laws, people are buying drinks from their local supermarket and enjoying drinks at home over a game of cards or TV sports. Just the other day, I saw my local s/market charging €10 for an eight-pack of Guinness. That’s huge difference between what you’d pay a publican for eight pints w/ yr friends. In these recessionary times, people don’t go to pubs as often. In the meantime, the publican still has his mortgage to pay off and pay minimum wage to staff but with fewer customers to help him cover all his costs, so he will charge best what he find his customers will suffer. Hence the high price of a pint in Dublin and elsewhere.