Dining out in Dublin is more expensive than in Paris, London and Rome, a survey claims as the Government confirmed that hospitality would continue to benefit from a reduced rate of VAT until August.
A survey ranking 20 European capitals for dining out places Dublin at number 10 overall, but indicates that its restaurants are among the region’s costliest.
A three-course meal for two in the Republic’s capital costs €80, according to the figures, which show that diners pay an average of €60 to eat in a Parisian restaurant.
The news came as the Government confirmed it would extend the hospitality industry’s special 9 per cent VAT rate until the end of the summer.
The survey, by casino promoter Bonusetu, uses average mid-market restaurants for its calculations and relies on online cost-of-living aggregators for its figures.
They show that London is marginally cheaper for eating out, with three courses setting customers back €78.05, while the same meal costs €70 in Rome. Luxembourg ranks alongside Dublin at €80.
Denmark’s capital Copenhagen is the most expensive at €107.32, followed by Monaco on €100.
Restaurants Association of Ireland chief executive Adrian Cummins blamed inflation and high energy bills for the cost of eating out here. “The cost of business has increased,” he said. “I don’t really need to go through them all: energy costs, rent, rates have all gone up.”
However, he argued that the industry had kept its price increases at below the rate of inflation, which was 8 per cent according to most recent calculations.
At the same time, the consumer price index showed that restaurants had hiked their bills by an average of 7 per cent.
Mr Cummins highlighted that French energy and labour costs were lower than in the Republic. He acknowledged that some restaurants had benefited from contracts protecting them from the worst of the energy inflation that has left families struggling to pay bills.
However, once those contracts ended, suppliers sought multiples of what restaurants had been paying, he noted, with increases of 200-300 per cent. “That’s just not sustainable,” he said.
French energy prices are among Europe’s lowest as the country has a high number of nuclear-powered electricity generators, leaving it less reliant on natural gas.
Electricity costs French households between 20 cent and 21 cent a kilowatt hour, the unit in which it is sold, while the same quantity of power costs Irish households 41 cent.
Mr Cummins argued that there was little sign of energy suppliers passing on lower wholesale rates. “I think there’s some profiteering going on,” he added.
