Credit crunch bypasses pubs as rugby writer Bill Lothian floored by crisp charge

ALL our rugby reporter Bill Lothian wanted when he stepped up to the bar at the Golf Tavern in Bruntsfield was a cheap and cheerful bag of crisps to accompany his pint.

So when staff asked him to hand over a whopping £1.35, the joke seemed a little half-baked.

The Evening News swiftly got on the case, and as we tried to track down the Capital’s priciest potato snack we found that customers are willing to dig deep when hunger strikes, even in the credit “crunch”.

Compared with the £1.50 bags on offer at some city bars, Bill’s Real Handcooked Crisps seem cheap, even though the same brand can be bought for just 65p at the Golden Rule in Polwarth.

Bill said: “Apparently, nobody had told the crisp salesperson at the Golf Tavern there is a credit crunch.

“For £1.35, you didn’t even have the satisfaction of scratching about trying to find that wee blue bag of salt near the bottom – or am I just showing my age?

“I never realised there was so much money to be made from crisps. No wonder Gary Lineker always has a self-satisfied grin.”

Golf Tavern manager Jaqueline Weston said that the crisps continued to go down well with customers. “They are good quality and we certainly don’t make a fortune from selling them.”

Alex Campbell, who described the Golf Tavern as his local, said: “I think that seems a good price, I’m quite happy with the crisps.”

Elsewhere in the Capital, standard bags of crisps including Walkers and Golden Wonder could be purchased for just 60p. Charlie Russell, owner of Bennets Bar in Tollcross, where bags of Walkers are available for 70p, said: “We sell our crisps for the same price you could buy them down the shop – we’re not looking to make a profit on them.

“Sometimes I have been out for a few drinks and I’ve asked for crisps and thought – they cost what?

“But our customers just want a good bag of old-fashioned crisps.”

Peter Waterson, of the Scottish Licensed Trade Association, said: “I’m surprised at some of those prices. I know that some places do higher- quality crisps and you would expected them to be a bit dearer.

“When you look at the excellent prices a lot of pubs sell main meals for, £1.50 does seem a bit steep, but I would say on the whole the prices of food, nuts and crisps available in pubs is pretty good.”