Pub Food in Focus: Sharing food, saving money

In the latest QuickBite survey, carried out in June, consumers indicated they are less likely to eat out now than they were three months ago.

Asked if they were likely to eat out more, less or about the same over the next year as this year, 68 per cent of respondents felt they would eat out as often in the coming year as they had in the past 12 months, but 24 per cent thought they would eat out less often - an increase on previous surveys.

Consumers seem to be changing their eating out habits in response to the current economic climate. The survey found that 39 per cent report ordering both fewer starters and desserts than six months ago. This shift is too large to pin purely on healthier eating; it is more likely to be a result of consumers trying to reduce food spend.

There was very little difference between men and women, but there was a marked increase in 16 to 24-year-olds reducing their orders of courses of this type when compared to other age groups.

Sharing dishes are increasingly seen as a way to reduce meal spend, with 29 per cent of consumers ordering more than before. Women lead the way - 31 per cent are sharing more compared with 27 per cent of men; Northerners (33 per cent) are ordering sharing dishes more often than those living in the South (26 per cent).

More than half (54 per cent) of those surveyed said they are more conscious of price when placing their orders than they were six months ago, with women (57 per cent) proving to be more price sensitive than their male counterparts (50 per cent). There is a clear north to south decrease in price sensitivity with 56 per cent in the North, 53 per cent in the Midlands and 51 per cent in the South watching how their food pounds are spent.

When considering changing habits of alcohol consumption in response to wider economic pressures, 28 per cent say they are ordering wine by the glass, rather than by the bottle, more often than they used to. This is especially noticeable among women - 32 per cent of them report buying wine by the glass compared with 24 per cent of men.

An even higher overall percentage (51 per cent) say they are ordering less alcohol in general than at the end of 2008, with women again more likely to be drinking less. Parties are also getting smaller - 39 per cent of respondents are eating out in smaller parties than they were six months ago.

Pubs and pub restaurants remain the preferred place to eat out, with 21 per cent of respondents saying it was the last place where they had had a meal out compared with 15 per cent in fast food outlets and 11 per cent in a coffee shop.

Although pub restaurants have remained the commonest place to visit, the number of visits has fallen by about 20 per cent over the last three years.

• Consumer data is taken from QuickBite, Horizons' quarterly tracking survey of UK eating out behaviour based on a sample of 1,000 respondents age 16+, demographically representative of the GB population. The survey was carried out June 13 and 14. It provides a consumer counterpoint to Menurama, Horizons' database of menus of the UK's top 100 multiple and branded chain foodservice operators and leading independents. For further details visit www.horizonsforsuccess.com, email info@horizonsforsuccess.com or phone 020 8349 0162