"restaurant pricing" news and stories

In some sectors, it's practically de rigueur (and awfully hilarious) to rip on the rarefied findings of NY Times restaurant critic Frank Bruni, but I've gotta say I tend to dig his indignation as expressed through the fewer-holds-barred medium of the website's Diner's Journal. I certainly jibe with his notions of the judiciously applied dress code and the diner's right to doggie bags, but I'm almost irrationally delighted by his use of the bully pulpit to call out the stealthy price jabbings of high-end restaurants.

He specifically cites the same outrageous charges (his boiling point is $7, mine was $6) for postprandial tea that I'd kvetched about a while back. Nothing falutin', not a monkey-harvested Pur-eh or shade-grown sencha -- just in his case a mint T-brand tea (which tea purists would prefer we refer to as a "tisane" rather than a tea as it's actually an herbal infusion, but I digress) which at $17.95 for 1.76 oz tin, retail, would surely produce, uh, more than 2.56 cups. Yes, service, water heating, cups, rent, etc. don't come for free but still, the whole enterprise is quite crabby-making in this strained economy.

Mr. Bruni, we salute your foray into the consumer advocacy front and will be following the "That Costs What?!?" series juuuust as soon as you get that pesky RSS tag fixed ravenously.

[via: New York Times Diner's Journal]

My favorite ice cream shop used to let you buy ice cream by weight so you got exactly the amount of ice cream you wanted to pay for. This arrangement was so perfect for me. I loved ordering a bunch of tiny scoops in all different flavors. Sadly, they recently switched to the more standard small, medium, and large model. I guess the old model didn't work for them.

Apparently, a similiar model is working at Dan's restaurant in Biddeford, Maine. The Today Show recently featured the restaurant and both the owner and customers seemed happy. Maybe you don't want that giant plate of fries, but what if you could just get a dollar's worth? At this restaurant, you just order the dish, state a dollar amount, and they fix up an appropriate plate. Whether you prefer smaller portions due to your diet or your wallet, it's great to have the option. I hope it continues to work for them and that the idea spreads.

[via The Consumerist]