Punters are flocking to a West Midlands pub selling pints for just £2.30 – the average price 15 years ago – making it possibly the cheapest drink in Britain.
The Waggon and Horses in Oldbury sells all beers, ciders and ales for £2.90 or less to encourage customers to drink in traditional local pubs.
Although other places have previously reduced the cost of one or two brands to bring it down, customers feel that no place can be beat on price for its entire beverage selection.
The former Black Country pub said it wanted to “give back” to locals with cheap beer as many people struggle during the cost of living crisis.
A pint of Stella will now set you back just £2.80, while Carling, Coors and John Smiths is £2.40 and a pint of Thatcher’s Gold or Brew XI bitter is £2.30.
Pictured above is Mandy Merrix, manager of The Waggon and Horses pub in Oldbury, West Midlands.
The average cost of a pint in the UK is now above £4 for the first time – £4.30, up from £2.30 in 2008, during the last recession.
And a pint in London’s West End can now top £9, while one in ten pubs sell between £6 and £6.99 and 40 per cent order an average of £4.58.
Leaseholder Matthew Porter said: “I have had this pub for seven years and it is a proper local pub.” You deserve to be busy every day.
‘There are multi-million dollar companies on both sides that are raising their prices, and we are lowering ours to say ‘come and drink with us.’
‘Nowadays you have to think a little outside the box. We simply looked at how far we could reduce our prices while still surviving.
‘As long as we fill the place all day, every day, we should be able to pay the bills and people will get cheap beer, so everyone is happy.
“It’s tough for people at the moment, some are struggling and are no longer going out and spending £40 on a Friday night.”
“But if that suddenly becomes a £10 night out, we hope people will feel more inclined to come and have a drink with us.”
The drinks menu at The Waggon and Horses pub in Oldbury has remained cheap as the owners have strived to keep beer prices as low as they were 15 years ago.
‘We want to keep the traditional pubs. They are part of communities and they are closing everywhere. I think the younger generations will forget how to socialize.
‘But to keep our prices low, we need people to show their support.
‘We are lowering prices for everyone, but we need them to come and show their support to keep prices low.
“We just want to give something back.”
The small, traditional pub serves cob sandwiches daily and has four televisions showing live sports and events.
Matthew added: ‘The interior architecture is phenomenal. There are antique tiled floors and ceilings and an authentic wood burning fireplace.
“The pub is small, but it makes up for it with its atmosphere.”
Pub customer George Scott, 67, from Oldbury, added: “It’s a great little pub and I will be back here many more times now the prices are so low.”
The exterior of The Waggon and Horses pub in Oldbury, West Midlands
‘Credit to them. At the moment, prices seem to be going up in all aspects of life, so seeing them go down somewhere is surprising.
‘I’ve heard of pubs reducing the price of a pint or two to a lower price, but here they’ve reduced virtually their entire selection, which is unheard of.
“There are others who earn £1 a liter for a certain number of hours one day a week, but keeping prices so low all the time is brilliant.”
“It has to be the cheapest pub in the country in terms of everything on offer.”
Geordie Gordon, 62, originally from Newcastle and now living in Oldbury, has been drinking at Waggon and Horse for 15 years.
He said, ‘Yeah, I think it’s great. I’ve just come back from Cardiff where he was paying £6 a pint and it was the cheapest.
“So coming back here, where the prices are so low, makes it a lot more affordable to have a pint.”
‘Prices now are similar to when I started coming 15 years ago. It’s a lovely little pub and everyone knows each other.
Pictured is local resident ‘Georgie’ Gordon, enjoying a pint of bitters from the value menu.
“There are new faces from time to time, like away fans when the Baggies play, and we see more now thanks to the cheap prices.”
Another punter, Michael Brennan, 50, from Great Bridge, added: “My drink is Stella which is usually quite expensive so getting it for £2.80 is a bargain.”
And £2.30 for Thatcher is crazy these days. But I’m glad this is my local and I hope it attracts more customers.”
The Waggon and Horses is open from 10am to 11pm Monday to Friday and 11.30am to 11pm on Sundays.