Tap water at a restaurant

Soldato
Joined
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Newcastle upon Tyne
Hi guys I was always under the impression that a restaurant was legally obligied to give you tap water if you wanted it, and that they couldn't charge you for it. Is this still the case?
 
Yes.

even tho i got charged for soda water when i asked for a jug of still water. which cost 7.50
 
Yep.

Pubs and clubs are the same.

I don't think they're obliged to do so if you aren't buying other things though. Also, if you just ask for water you may well get mineral water.

Neoni said:
Yes.

even tho i got charged for soda water when i asked for a jug of still water. which cost 7.50
You asked for still water, got soda water and paid for it?
 
Gilly said:
Yep.

Pubs and clubs are the same.

I don't think they're obliged to do so if you aren't buying other things though. Also, if you just ask for water you may well get mineral water.


You asked for still water, got soda water and paid for it?

complained, gave me money back in end.
 
Just yesterday 7 of us went to a Chinese buffet and they said they only sold bottled water, and refused to give us tap water. My dad stormed out at this point. We crossed the road to another Chinese buffet, who also refused to give us tap water. The guy at the till said he could increase the price of the meal to give us tap water for free. We then went to a 3rd Chinese buffet, who also refused to give us tap water.
 
I agree that tap water should be FREE (since i ask for it a lot :p ).

But i can also see why it is perfectly within the restaurants rights to refuse to supply it. Why should they be compelled to serve tap water? Unless there is a particular law which says so, they are totally within their rights to decide what to serve and how much to charge. If you dont agree with their prices, feel free to go some other place.
 
Yep, and here's a tip. When your lady friend asks for sparkling water thinking you're made of money and can throw it away on h2o, ask for tap at the bar and drop in some Alka-Seltzer.
 
Yes, although it does tend to wind up the owners in nice places that you wish to wash down their dishes with some 'detergent' ! (The actual reason is because profits on bottled water are huge, margins on food are less big)
 
I've spoken to consumer direct and a restaurant can charge for tap water. They can also refuse to serve you it. It's only pubs and clubs which are legally obliged to give you tap water for free if you want it.
 
iCraig said:
Yep, and here's a tip. When your lady friend asks for sparkling water thinking you're made of money and can throw it away on h2o, ask for tap at the bar and drop in some Alka-Seltzer.
Cheapskate!


I Love it :D

But yeah, I've been to a few clubs and I've asked for tap water, and they say they only provide bottled water, can end up arguing with them, which can annoy other people. But if people can buy 2 bottles of beer for a quid, why can't I get water for free. Ridiculous.
 
iCraig said:
Yep, and here's a tip. When your lady friend asks for sparkling water thinking you're made of money and can throw it away on h2o, ask for tap at the bar and drop in some Alka-Seltzer.

Dilutable rohitnol f t w.

Restaurants over here always have tap water. Or atleast they did until our tap water in galway got infected with crptosporidium (poo). It is odd to not be able to get tap water in restaurants but the good places either give you bottled water at cost price or have a UV filter.
 
mrochester said:
Just yesterday 7 of us went to a Chinese buffet and they said they only sold bottled water, and refused to give us tap water. My dad stormed out at this point. We crossed the road to another Chinese buffet, who also refused to give us tap water. The guy at the till said he could increase the price of the meal to give us tap water for free. We then went to a 3rd Chinese buffet, who also refused to give us tap water.
It's weird, but all Chinese buffets do this. I guess its because they sell the food at a minor profit, and make a huge markup on drinks.
 
I wasn't sure how to spell it so I did a google search and got hits without google going "Are you sure you don't mean ...." so I assumed rohitnol was right. :o

*self fail*
 
platypus said:
It's weird, but all Chinese buffets do this. I guess its because they sell the food at a minor profit, and make a huge markup on drinks.

Our best one doesn't :)

But then my mum is the only one who will drink tap water, so i'm sure they don't see much ofa problem.
 
platypus said:
It's weird, but all Chinese buffets do this. I guess its because they sell the food at a minor profit, and make a huge markup on drinks.

The all-you-can-eat one at Angel charges 30p for a glass of tap water! I don't really mind since I usually stick to the beer anyway, but some of my tight-ass friends weren't too happy when they found out. :)
 
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