Soda water and lime cordial, how much?
02-September-2010
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Soda water and lime cordial, how much?

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I recently went to meet my girlfriend at one of the Harvester restaurants, a pub called the Kings Arms at Gosford, near Kidlington.  It was one of those afternoons during the recent heat wave and I was pretty thirsty by the time I got there so I thought I’d have a pint of lager shandy whilst I waited.

I went to the bar to order my drink and the bill came to £1.90.  I thought this was actually pretty reasonable because most pubs charge about the same as pint of lager, which these days is closer to £2.50 and I was expecting to pay between £2 and £2.50 for the shandy.

Looking forward to this refreshing cold drink on this hot sunny day I went outside and chose to sit in a shady spot in the beer garden with a good view of the car park so I’d be able to see my better half when she arrived.  This particular Harvester restaurant is in a nice location and to be honest I was very much enjoying sitting there with a cold one watching the world go by, so much so that I had finished my drink before my partner had even arrived.

After a brief conversation with her to find out where she was, I realised I still had at least another ten to fifteen minutes to wait.  As I was still rather thirsty I decided to go to the bar and get another drink.

I am currently self-employed and whilst I am not penniless, I do have to be careful how much I spend.  With this in mind and taking into account that what I really needed was a thirst quenching drink rather than an alcoholic one, I decided to buy a lime and soda water this time round.

Harvester restaurants, A cool refreshing pint of lime cordial and sparking soda water

This is my drink of choice when I visit a pub and I don’t want to drink beer.  Firstly, because I can’t drink the usual soft drinks such as Lemonade and Coca Cola in any quantity and secondly, lime and soda is usually a lot cheaper.  It is after all only fizzy water and lime cordial!

I ordered my drink and was about to take a sip.  The bartender meanwhile had been to the till to enter my drink.  When he came back over he said to me" That will be two pounds please."  I can tell you that I nearly choked on that drink there and then!

Not being the type who enjoys a good confrontation, I don’t usually like to query bills at a restaurant etc.  I find those sorts of situations quite embarrassing and unless someone is really trying to take advantage of me I don’t usually complain.  In fact, quite often I probably wouldn’t even notice.

I do feel however that on this occasion I should have said something.  I suspect though that the answer I got would have been along the lines of "That’s how much it is I’m afraid."  Anyway, I paid up and I shut up, but I’ve been seething about this ever since.

How can a pint of cordial and carbonated water cost more than a pint of lager and lemonade?  These pub chains shouldn’t be allowed to get away with this kind of daylight robbery! I won't be visiting any other Harvester restaurants any time soon.


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I found your article after searching about the legality of charging ridiculous amounts of money for a lime and soda.

I asked for a lime and soda from The Ship Pub in East Tilbury this week and the barmaid suggested I have a large drink, I was thirsty so I said yes please. I ordered some food and after eating with a friend, went to pay the bill only to find out I had been charged £2.50 for the soda and £1.30 for the lime..I was in company and much like you did not want to make a fuss, I did question the bill and was told they could charge that amount because it was in a pint glass !!


I expected to pay for the shot of lime cordial, but soda water is usually free. £3.80 for a lime and soda..thats just pure extortion..no wonder people dont go to pubs..this is just an example of pure greed on the part of the Landlord.

So I will will be telephoning the Landlord to discuss his pricing, I will also be speaking to Trading Standards to see if what they are doing is legal and then I will be putting a damning review on their facebook page...and needless to say I will never go back there.

Its good to know that there is someone else out there that thinks this is a total rip off. Its time to boycott these places and make sure they know that this is not an acceptable practice...
*Sue  28-Aug-2010 22:27

 
I've decided to forgo beer for a few weeks, but living in the sticks there is little to do at the weekend during the evening other than go to the pub (I could sit in on my own like a Nobby no mates, but would much rather continue to socialise!) and was searching for something to drink that was neither full of caffeine (keeps me awake something rotten...) nor full of sugar (not much of a sweet tooth.

Soda water and lime seemed the answer (especially while the weather is still reasonably warm). Now, my local pub is horribly expensive (£3.20-£3.60 a pint depending what beer you're drinking...) and so I was expecting a rip off for soda water and lime. Much to my surprise it was a mere 50p a pint! I can live with that, and it'll certainly save me a few quid over beer, though that wasn't my reason for not drinking!
*Laughing Gravy  22-Aug-2010 10:04

 
I belong to a local Sussex Rambling Group and we have a pub stop every sunday, I always have a pint of lime soda. The price varies, sometimes extremely cheap 60p/£1.50. Today I was amazed when the barman at a pub in Washington, West Sussex requested £2.40! when I queried the charge I was informed that was correct. I promptly returned the glass and informed him I refused to pay that amount. How on earth do pubs justify these prices? obviously out of principle I will not visit the pub again.
*Sue Tilly  15-Aug-2010 21:15

 
Can beat this hands down!!!! My wife and I were charged £2.95 for a HALF PINT of soda and lime in a restaurant in Edinburgh - Stac Polly!!! Been in a bit of a dispute with the owner about this as we nearly fell off the seat at the sight of the bill!! All soft drinks are £2.95 per half pint!!!! Wait for this..........WE HAD TO PAY A 10% SERVICE CHARGE TOO!!!!! So quite simply..... 4 half pints of soft drink (2 soda and lime + 2 flat lemonades) were £12.98!!!!!!!!!
*Jayzee-Dingbats  26-Jul-2010 22:42

 
Just been charged 1.30 for a pint of lime and soda at the caldicote arms by the lake in milton kenes. The soda is free appafently which means a shot of lime was 1.30. How can they get away with that?
*aod  27-Jun-2010 15:31

 
I enjoyed my visit to Harvester Restaurant at Colton Leeds. Can't get on to site mentioned to register my comment and have chance of winning iPOD or £1,000. Con??
*Penguin  07-Jun-2010 11:11

 
Please do challenge the bartender when you are charged anything more than £1.50 for a pint of lime and soda. If the barperson maintains that the price is fair, ask to see the manager.
I went for a pint of lime and soda the other week at a poshed-up pub in Holland Park, one of the most expensive parts of London, but was very surprised to be charged £1.10. I thanked the bartender for charging a fair price. (It was the Mitre pub.)
*NHD  06-Jun-2010 21:22

 
On Sunday last my wife and I went to the harvester in Boscombe Bournemouth, service was excellent,and they must have done something about the prices your quoting . I was only charged 80p for a lime and soda,and my grandsons blackcurrant squash was only 40p, great value all round with the earlybird price for the meal
*smiffy in Hants  09-Apr-2010 15:35

 
today I visited the harvester at handy cross, High Wycombe, my lime and soda was 40p, thats more realistic.
*heatherbelle  11-Mar-2010 18:50

 
Caffine Delight-I hope you asked for your money back.Don't put up with it.If you are not happy then complain.
*Maxwell House  26-Jan-2010 19:42

 
The meal at Harvester Bickley Kent was good but the coffee is like gnats pee.I asked if l could have stronger coffee but was told they are only allowed to use one pod per mug.What a joke at £2.40 for a builders mug of pea water.Dont bother if you need a caffine fix.
*Caffine Delight  26-Jan-2010 16:34

 
A 200 ml tiny bottle of Coke in the Mitre Hotel pub in Greenwich today cost £1-40p. A 2 litre bottle of Coke in Tesco Express later that day cost £1-65p.

Please try to explain to me the 9x difference in price. Coke is more expensive than beer in this pub.

A very very bad joke.
*Greedy Publicans  10-Jan-2010 22:47


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