Cost of drinking: good news and bad news.

Gleaned from a recent e-mail news blast from Sante magazine (ITB on-premise food and wine mag):

Seems a Boston-based outfit called Intellaprice did some surveys on drinking and reported the following:

On average, the lowest cost for drinking in bars and restaurants seems to be in Oklahoma City. That's the good news. The bad news is you have to be in Oklahoma City to take advantage of the low cost of drinking.

The most expensive place to drink in the US? Appparently, it's Washington DC. So that would be bad news/bad news: not only are you paying more, but you're drinking in DC.

[James Roscoe]

That would jive with my experience.

What else do you want people in DC to do? We have to put up with Congress!

Just in general, drinking in bars has gotten to be a very expensive proposition.
I'm not even talking about wine here, just cocktails.
I feel kind of sorry for the kids that are just starting their drinking careers.

My favorite bar recently raised their margaritas from $6.50 to $7.50. It gets expensive after a few rounds.

The most expensive place to drink in the US? Apparently, it's Washington DC.

Yep. Four and sometimes even five times retail for a restaurant bottle, or $10/glass for a wine that costs the same or less for a whole bottle retail. Not to mention 9 percent sales tax on restaurant bills and retail alcohol purchases.

On the positive side, this is a pretty good place to buy retail with an above average selection and sometimes below average prices. Not like NYC or, I imagine, the Bay Area, but better than most places around the country.

that would be bad news/bad news: not only are you paying more, but you're drinking in DC.

But look at this way; if you're in DC, you're better off drinking.

A friend I roomed with for a year when we both were high school teachers in Michigan went out for cocktails with me in our hometown of Lincoln, NE and concluded that you could get a cheap drunk in Lincoln (as compared to Detroit area.)

I attended a professional conference in Oklahoma City a few years ago and the restaurant choices seemed quite limited. Decent steaks but apalling wine lists.

Just returned from two nights in Asheville (to see the Biltmore Estate mansion decorated for Christmas). The restaurant scene there is looking up. Pretty good wine list at Savoy on Merrimon and impressive wine list at Flying Frog Cafe at 1 Battery Park Avenue. Nice Port and dessert wine list also. Speaking of low prices, they left the price of my glass of German Riesling off the bill and when I pointed it out to the server, he made it complimentary. (I did pay for a glass of Colheita Port however.)