£5.30 Carlsberg and 'not quite downtown Naples' - the racegoer experience at Bath

The Racecourse Prices Index (RPI) is a new and occasional series, in which we report from each of Britain and Ireland's racetracks on the cost of going racing.

Racecourse report: entry, food and pint prices from Bath

Bath: very solid food and drink options and burger was grandCredit: Edward Whitaker

Bath

Date visited: Monday, May 24, 2022

Was it a big day?

Nope. A £12,000 Class 3 was the highlight.

How much was entry on the gate?

£21.

Other than restaurants/hospitality, what were the food and beverage options?

Not a bad selection at all. The burger stall did the usual, but there was another vendor flogging loaded chips, which might not leave your wallet loaded if you went for the chicken katsu curry version (£10), but the portions looked decent and the 'plain and simple' cheesy-topped offering was a reasonable £6. 

The 1811 bar offered fresh pizza at £10 – margherita and pepperoni – although adding a pint to that would mean a small saving at £15 all in. The pizza oven looked the part, although the nearby presence of some dried pasta packets, tinned tomatoes and Balocco-branded hazelnut and pistachio 'Torte In Festa' cake didn't exactly make you feel like you were in downtown Naples. What might have was the rich roasted smell of beans in the coffee shop, which had sandwiches and wraps at £4.50, while there was an ice cream van, although Bath – given its location so far above sea level – almost always has a chilly feel to it.

What's the damage?

Bottle of water: £2
Cheapest pint: £5.30 for Carlsberg, Kingston Press and Shipyard
Guinness: £6.10
Burger: £6.50

All drink prices taken from the main racecourse bar, or where there are multiple bars, one chosen at random.

What was the burger like?

Nice. Not amazing, but what do you expect for £6.50? Fair value.

And the queues?

Nothing to alarm or annoy you and plenty of staff on duty. It was, however, a run-of-the-mill Tuesday meeting.

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