$28.50 Beer at LaGuardia Sparks Audit of New York Airport Concession Prices

https://eyeoftheflyer.com/2021/08/03/tweet-of-28-50-beer-at-la-guardia-sparks-audit-of-new-york-airport-concession-prices/

by lxm • 5 years ago

203 236 5 years ago

eyeoftheflyer.com

relyks• 5 years ago

There was a better article about this on The City: https://www.thecity.nyc/2021/8/1/22604814/nyc-airport-high-p...

paulgb• 5 years ago

That article is the source of the reporting in the main article here, which doesn’t really add much (except more invasive ads). Maybe @dang could replace the linked article with that one?

shawnz• 5 years ago

I particularly like how they have this written at the bottom of this article about price-gouging:

Which Credit Card is the Best for Those Expensive Airport Beers?! Our credit card partner, C*****s, can direct you to the best cards for your goals, financial situation, and credit score. Answer a couple of simple questions below — then see what they recommend for YOU!

runawaybottle3• 5 years ago

These are predatory prices because Americans drink a lot. As that buzz builds up, you won’t be thinking too much about continuously paying for a few more drinks. I’d love to know their cocktail prices.

If you’ve ever spent any time going to bars regularly, here’s a pro tip:

Just hit up the liquor store and buy a few 2 dollar shots. Keep asking for a soda at the bar. At most, the night may cost you 20-30 dollars. The only downside to this is that it’s very easy to pick up a drinking habit on the cheap.

rovr138• 5 years ago

These are predatory prices because people traveling for work will pay them and expense them.

Just hit up the liquor store and buy a few 2 dollar shots.

Then what, walk through airport security with them?

throw_away• 5 years ago

you will also need a quart-sized ziploc:

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/whatcanibring/...

runawaybottle3• 5 years ago

I believe you can take 100ml in.

iamthepieman2• 5 years ago

Ummmm.... Yes? I have done exactly this. The little shot sized plastic bottles are well under the liquid limit for airports in the U.S. I usually use them on the plane and mix them with the free ginger ale or tonic water.

the_only_law2• 5 years ago

Then what, walk through airport security with them?

Last year I watched a few people down a fifth right before they were up for screening.

goatherders4• 5 years ago

Yes. That's what I do. Even with an expense account I buy the single serving vodka at the liquor store nearby.

r2vq• 5 years ago

Liquor laws may differ where you are but I wouldn't recommend bringing alcohol into a bar where I live. If you're caught, you'll, at best, be kicked out.

runawaybottle3• 5 years ago

I’ve done it plenty of times. Sit in the corner and pour in one of the shots, no one notices (the bottles are too small).

I’m not advocating ripping off the bar. But if you and whoever you may be with are already in $100 range, I think it’s fine to do. They markup the prices pretty dramatically and it makes a difference if you are going out a lot.

asdff4• 5 years ago

Just do what people do for drugs and go into the bathroom stall.

xenihn• 5 years ago

What's the worst case?

jimmyvalmer2• 5 years ago

That's a "pro tip"? This is on page 1 of every college unofficial guide.

mc32• 5 years ago

There is so much of this opportunistic taking advantage of a captive audience in these kinds of places.

I hope this is just the beginning of cleaning up rip-offs like this (ballparks are skirting close). I hope this doesn't get buried under a pile of bribe money/contributions.

avs733• 5 years ago

That’s starting to feel like a generalized descriptor of America.

bgirard• 5 years ago

I'd be embarrassed to even expense this.

goatherders4• 5 years ago

If you had ever had an expense account then you wouldn't. It's part of the deal.

jcims• 5 years ago

The place I work requires you to take business class for transoceanic flights.

Somebody on my team got yelled at for taking coach after the event canceled and he couldn’t get a refund.

$8k for midwest to Glasgow? Sign me up lol

danielodievich• 5 years ago

few years ago I was in JFK on business trip and experienced that specific and had the same feeling, then shrugged, bought it and expensed it. Nobody cared then and I don't think they would now.

vechagup• 5 years ago

And yet the Weihenstephaner, which actually tastes good, goes for almost $10 less.

Bud• 5 years ago

That's still about a 500% markup. Outrageous by any standard.

edmundsauto7• 5 years ago

500% on beer isn’t that bad. Your typical bar, without the need for any airport security stuff, is probably 3x at least.

guythedudebro• 5 years ago

Actually tastes good is a severe understatement

mbg721• 5 years ago

After 981 years, I'm not surprised that they know a thing or two about brewing.

exogeny• 5 years ago

I forget the name of the company, but many of the concessions at terminals in US airports are basically monopolies controlled by one company. They go a long way in obfuscating it through iPads, authentic-sounding fronts (ie: the Biergarten in this example), and partnerships with celebrity chefs like Wolfgang Puck who are willing to whore their name. But in the end everything goes back to a common commissary kitchen, where they serve up cafeteria food.

It's ridiculous, and part of the reason why almost all US airports are awful, Kafka-esque centers of frustration and disappointment.

Edit: The company is OTG. They're basically what Aramark is to sporting arenas, except to airports. Get a monopoly for the captives, drive up prices, and serve up garbage.

Justin_K• 5 years ago

Most likely HMS Host. All your airport receipts will say that, once you start looking.

sithadmin11• 5 years ago

HMS host doesn’t do the upscale appearance and iPad thing. They tend to stick to low end franchise operations and news stands.

sithadmin11• 5 years ago

You’re probably thinking of OTG, the offender in the article linked.

I disagree with your assessment of their quality. As someone that used to spend a majority of the year traveling in the pre-COVID world, OTG takeovers have only improved the quality of food and drinks that are available in the airports they have won contracts in. Yes, they have some establishments that aren’t great, but I still prefer their attempt to be somewhat more appealing than Subway/Burger King/Dunkin Donuts/whatever other garbage tier food option used to be in the same spot OTG took over.

Their prices are stupidly expensive, but for business travelers with expense accounts…it doesn’t matter.

goatherders4• 5 years ago

Not sure why this is being downvoted. As a guy that travels 200k miles a year you have hit the nail on the head.

irjustin• 5 years ago

You got downvoted, but I generally agree that it is garbage for the amount that you pay, but remove the price and airport food isn't bad at the ~$30 range.

That's the point though right? OTG prices at the highest point they can, which is likely 50%-65% of a per-diem @ $75/day.

As a non-business traveler though, it's a nightmare for the monopoly, but I'm agreeing w/ the quality part.

Airline food, now that's terrible, even in Premium Economy.

JohnJamesRambo• 5 years ago

Your last line rubs me the wrong way. Prices always matter, especially in business.

JKCalhoun• 5 years ago

But Shake Shack!

Have a family, we travel. My expense account is my wallet.

anigbrowl• 5 years ago

If they're so proud of it why do they hide it behind a plethora of different brands? And really, how competent do you have to be to produce normally edible food if you're charging $28 for a beer?

xfitm34• 5 years ago

HMS is worse than OTG. I would avoid HMS as much as possible due to consistent poor quality. I also don't care about cost due to expense account, except when traveling for pleasure.

Hnrobert424• 5 years ago

And for the majority of travelers who are not expense accounted?

mdorazio• 5 years ago

The problem is that even pre-COVID, business travelers only accounted for somewhere around 30% of air travelers. Post-COVID, that number is far lower. So stupidly high prices that are affordable to business travelers with expense accounts are not even remotely affordable for the vast majority of travelers.

sellyme3• 5 years ago

I still prefer their attempt to be somewhat more appealing than Subway/Burger King/Dunkin Donuts/whatever other garbage tier food option used to be in the same spot

In my experience Subway has a 100% hit rate of being better than a $26 airport hash brown, egg and bacon muffin, and small coffee.

tablespoon• 5 years ago

but I still prefer their attempt to be somewhat more appealing than Subway/Burger King/Dunkin Donuts/whatever other garbage tier food option used to be in the same spot OTG took over.

Don't the also operate franchises like those, too? It's been a long time since I've flown, but I think my local airport has well-known franchises, "local" restaurants, and probably some generic ones, all operated by the same company (which is clear from the receipts).

1MachineElf• 5 years ago

I might disagree with the notion that Subway/Burger King/Dunkin Donuts is garbage tier. Obviously it isn't the healthiest food, but the minimum quality standards mean something for those big brands. At least consumers can be confident that what comes out of their local Subway/Burger King/Dunkin Donuts will also come out of the same in an airport.

pmoriarty• 5 years ago

They've also got a captive audience, almost none of whom are going to go out of the airport to go to a competitor because they'd have to suffer through the traffic, parking, and security lines to get back in.

It's a similar thing with ski resorts, skating rinks, bowling alleys, etc.. all of whom tend to charge exorbitant prices for mediocre food, or worse.

im_down_w_otp• 5 years ago

The only airport I've been to in the US that doesn't appear entirely beholden to this dynamic, or one very similar to it, is PDX. Portland International seems to have several eateries and establishments which are representative of some of the more popular local "name brand" establishments, e.g. Stumptown, Country Cat, Kenny & Zukes, etc. As a result, it's one of the only airports I don't dread eating at when I'm coming & going.

jdavis7033• 5 years ago

Off the top of my head SFO and MSP also have locally themed establishments, but ran by a single concessionaire.

chrisco255• 5 years ago

Austin's airport does this as well, a lot of local joints. And the Southern Terminal even has a food truck.

duxup2• 5 years ago

MSP (Minneapolis) does this too. Local brands have spots.

The folks running the airport actually manage selecting the establishments to make sure there is a variety of price points, types of places, and etc.

bpye• 5 years ago

SEA is the US airport I've been through most frequently, and I don't recall it being dreadful for food. Largely fast food style stuff, but there were multiple different options. Note - this is the international terminal, the domestic one could well be awful.

selimthegrim2• 5 years ago

MSY really focused on displaying local food offerings when it opened the new terminal (2019)

blhack• 5 years ago

Phoenix airport is this way as well. Some of the restaurants that locals are proud of have locations in the airport. It's pretty cool!

glennpratt• 5 years ago

That's not an accident.

Our promise to “street pricing” means things cost the same here as in town.

https://www.portofportland.com/about/pdx

Sebguer• 5 years ago

Tampa's airport is basically entirely local options after a revamp a few years ago.

ajmurmann2• 5 years ago

Yes, one of the things PDX does so well! At other airports I pretty much only go to McDonald's because its prices are typically the only ones that aren't crazy. At PDX though you can get fine, local food for a fair price

kenneth4• 5 years ago

My favorite US airport for food outlets is Austin. Nothing beats getting Salt Lick before your flight!

jpalomaki• 5 years ago

Noticed the same thing on the local Helsinki Airport. Most of the restaurants are actually operated by either HMShost[1] or SSP[2]. Seems to be part of the business model that they partner with global and local brands.

[1] https://www.foodtravelexperts.com/international/ [2] https://hmshost.international/

wyager2• 5 years ago

After being stuck in LHR for 40 hours due to alleged equipment isses, my layover in HEL was a huge breath of fresh air. Tons of personality for an airport. Made me want to go back and visit Finland sometime.

zippergz• 5 years ago

OTG is much, much smaller than HMS Host. If they appear to be in all airports, it's probably just because you happen to go the airports where they operate. A list is on their site: https://www.otgexp.com Once you're out of the East Coast, you will not encounter OTG.

danhak2• 5 years ago

My life changed so much for the better once I got lounge access.

Unlimited free food and beverages (restaurant quality at The Centurion), free WiFi to do some work, and a clean relaxing space to decompress a bit or even shower before a flight.

Will never pay $18 for a mediocre airport sandwich again.

sithadmin11• 5 years ago

I’m very much looking forward to the Centurion Lounge ending their ‘2 free guests’ admission policy next year. They’re fantastic lounges when they aren’t horrifically overcrowded and have screaming kids running around, which seemed to increasingly be the norm up until COVID hit.

By 2018 or so, I often began avoiding the Centurion in favor of Delta lounges just to have some space to myself.

seemaze• 5 years ago

Lol, we have a saying where I work:

The only thing better than executive platinum status is not having to get on another f#cking airplane.

OminousWeapons• 5 years ago

Yea the current Amex Platinum annual fee is insane but the lounge access you get on that card is pretty amazing. It really is worth it if you travel a lot.

balozi• 5 years ago

Airline club lounges are a racket of their own. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.

kenneth4• 5 years ago

Haha, it's been a long time since I've found a Centurion lounge relaxing.

Lounge access is only good when it's not full of people who just pay for a credit card. I'm quite fond of the Cathay, Swiss, and Lufthansa first class lounges. Centurions have gone completely down-hill since the Platinum got popular.

savoytruffle• 5 years ago

Wow — before I finished reading your post, I said to myself, "it must be Aramark". I am surprised it is a different company, but not surprised that it's similar.

onlyrealcuzzo• 5 years ago

Does anyone know of an article on how/why this happens?

The airport is the most interesting situation because it's the most unavoidable monopoly.

If you have really bad food, it might be bad enough that I decide it's not worth going to the stadium - this is theoretically bad for the stadium.

I doubt many people are going to not fly because the food in the airport sucks. They'll just pack snacks. The airport doesn't really care.

galaxyLogic• 5 years ago

The question is why was a single company granted the contract for all food in a given airport? Why not have multiple providers? A monopoly like this smells like corruption to me.

cosmodisk• 5 years ago

"almost all US airports are awful, Kafka-esque centers of frustration and disappointment."

Haven't been to the US, but the same applies to most European airports. Silly shops, silly layouts,etc. Heck, a few weeks ago I departed from a midsize airport that recently benefitted from billions of investment. Rest assure the money didn't go to make the whole process a bit easier for passengers and we all still had to stand in a crowded corridor and then on the stairs with no aircon except a big fan hanging off the ceiling.

ryan_lane2• 5 years ago

Airports in the EU and Asia all force you to walk through vast duty free sections before you get to cramped sitting areas all crammed together.

riantogo• 5 years ago

Ahh... LaGuardia. Last time I flew out of there they had porta potty for toilets. It might have been one of the worst airports I have been at.

asdff4• 5 years ago

Some airports are just terrible and it doesn't make any sense with the traffic they receive why they don't just spend the money. Ohare has semi permanent buckets to catch leaks from that notorious roof. We welcome people into the U.S. at these airports and that's the first thing they see off the plane, the ceiling pissing water in Ohare even on a sunny day.

joezydeco2• 5 years ago

Terminal 5 (International arrivals) doesn't have the leaking Helmut Jahn ceilings like T1, but it also has absolutely zero amenities between the gates and customs.

And, when you do exit, there is a single shitty McDonald's with no room to sit down and eat. There might be a Starbucks too now.

It's pretty pathetic.

spoonjim• 5 years ago

Why would the airport CEO spend money to fix O'Hare that could go to his bonus? What are you going to do about it? To transition to a new airport entirely (like Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson did to O'Hare) will take long enough for it to be the next CEO's bonus that will be affected.

LanceH2• 5 years ago

The last time I was in Philadelphia (2007ish) it looked like a scene from The 5th Element with a wall of luggage.

robertwt7• 5 years ago

Gee that is probably the most expensive pint I've ever seen.

zz8652• 5 years ago

Any reason why USA has the worst airports in the world?

Actually does anyone know if the infrastructure bill will improve anything?

LanceH2• 5 years ago

I get that you must be one of the people compelled to shit on the US at every chance, but "worst airports in the world" is a stretch.

sithadmin11• 5 years ago

Most mediocre would probably be fair, I think.

CaptainZapp2• 5 years ago

I give you one reason why US airports really are the worst airports in the world. At least when you want to use them to transit to a third country.

For example: Flying to Latin America from Europe it would make a lot of sense to connect in the US. Miami, Atlanta or even New York would be convenient airports to connect on a flight between, say, Zurich and Lima.

The problem is that the concept of transit is completely foreign in American airports.

I need to get my luggage, actually pass customs and immigration, recheck my luggage, probably change terminals to something which is kilometers away with potentially bad transportation options between them. Dealing - yet again - with the friendly folks of the TSA. And all this to finally connect to my flight to Lima.

Instead of a 90 minute connection time (maybe 120 minutes on bigger airports) I have to calculate a minimum of 4 hours. Potentially more, because a lot of those variables are beyond my control and for no good reason whatsoever. I don't want to set foot on American soil, but just connect to a flight to a third country.

You don't need some spiffy Asian or European airport. Just about any developing world dump of an airport figured the concept of transit out decades ago.

I check my bags in to the final destination. I don't need to deal with potentially horrid immigration experiences, don't have to pass through security again (granted, that's dependent on the airport. But almost certainly less of a hassle then anyway in America)

Maybe transit is just not important in America with the lion share of flights being domestic. But for international travelers wanting to connect to a third country they really are at the bottom of the barrel.

ardit332• 5 years ago

It has some of the oldest airports in the world as well... they were some of the first airports to be build. La Guardia, the posterchild of airport decay, is just recently being renovated, it was built between 1929 - 1939. Almost 90 years ago, and with a completely different volume in mid (even though it has had enhancements in the 50s, and 60s).

Same reason the NYC subway looks so shaggy, it was built in 1909.

Most of the glitzy airports in the asian, and arab nations, were built recently in the last 20-30 years.

If you have been in the Berlin aiport (the one in the east side), looks like crap too, as it was built in the 50s, and kinda just merely renovated. it has a very communist nostalgic and brutalist feeling though. It kinda reminded me Albania's old airport.

rudian• 5 years ago

Don’t come telling me about shaggy subways. Tokyo’s rails are nearly as old and they’re fine. More than fine, I’d argue.

sofixa• 5 years ago

That's a lousy excuse.

Paris Orly opened in 1932, and it wasn't glamorous but looked a lot better than La Guardia, even before the ( ongoing ) renovations there ( at Orly). CDG opened in 1974, and is pretty brutalist because apparently that was liked then as a style.

The Paris metro and London underground both predate the NYC subway, and are both cleaner ( the Paris one is slightly dependent on the station) and look and feel better maintained. Heck, the Paris metro has two fully automatic lines, with another one being converted and 3 new ones being built.

Having old infrastructure doesn't mean it should be left to rot. It should be refreshed and upgraded, or replaced.

TillE• 5 years ago

American airports pretty universally use jet bridges to board planes, which puts them well ahead of most major European airports, where you're gonna end up being packed in a bus half the time.

Unless you're somehow stuck in an airport for 6+ hours, I really only care about how much misery is added to the basic experience, and the US does pretty well overall, aside from the hostile security/border people.

zz8652• 5 years ago

Yeah actually driving to airport, parking and checking in is good. Mostly Europe wins on public transport to the airport.

asdff4• 5 years ago

The biggest issue with U.S. airports is the seating. No matter what airport you go to, its the same shitty chairs. You see people sleeping on the concrete floor where millions of people walk just because that is better than trying to rest your neck contorting on those chairs.

I was blown away in Europe. Entire sections with basically beach chairs. You could even pay money to sleep in a sound proof pod.

Symbiote• 5 years ago

The jet bridge is more expensive (they take up more space, where you could park two planes).

The lowest cost European airlines avoid this expense.

However, I've hardly ever seen them at a major airport, with the exception of the huge airports almost exclusively used by budget airlines (Stansted etc).

sithadmin11• 5 years ago

US airports generally don’t get the level of national funding that many international airports do. There are way too many airports for the US federal government to support them the way that their international peers are, and states and cities don’t have the budget to pick up the slack.

Bubbadoo2• 5 years ago

Sure, it goes well with one of the worst rail systems in the world and some of the worst roads in the third world.

Seriously, why is it Washington has such trouble investing in infrastructure. Even with the trillion$ under the current proposed legislation, I'll bet precious few $ make it to airports/rails/roads.

jandrewrogers3• 5 years ago

Probably because most of this infrastructure is paid for and built by the State and city governments. It isn’t Federal jurisdiction.

edmundsauto7• 5 years ago

Any reason to think American airports are bad or even below average? I’m not a super big world traveler, but having been in maybe 20 US airports and 10+ abroad, I think us is middle of the pack at worst.

justapassenger• 5 years ago

There’s lots of law/finance reasons, but there are some more basic ones.

Airports in USA are like bus depots. Flying is such a mundane and normal activity like taking a long distance bus or train somewhere else in the world. They just don’t bother making them special.

jandrewrogers3• 5 years ago

I have been through a lot of airports around the world and the US ones are mostly pretty nice and diverse in character. Definitely no worse than Europe on average in my experience, and I’d argue a bit nicer. The major airports in Asia are consistently relatively nice, though the drop-off to second-tier airports can be a bit extreme.

I’m not sure how you could come to the conclusion that the US has terrible airports. LaGuardia, the subject of the article, is famously among the worst airports in the US. It stands out because it is so notoriously awful, and travelers avoid it for that reason. It is also really, really old.

joezydeco2• 5 years ago

Are we bad at doing unit conversions?

Based on this link from relyks[1]....

“It’s just Sam Adams Summer Ale — that’s insane!” said Cooper Lund, 32, of Brooklyn, who encountered the pricey ($27.85) 23-ounce brew"

23 ounces. Almost 1.5 pints? Then at the bottom...

"And after passing on the high-priced Sam Adams Summer Ale, Lund said he settled for paying $11 for a 12-ounce beer."

0.75 pints. Which, in a 23-ounce portion, would have been $21.08.

[1] https://www.thecity.nyc/2021/8/1/22604814/nyc-airport-high-p...

pessimizer2• 5 years ago

I don't understand your comment. It's saying that he passed up a large, extremely high priced beer, and settled for a small, very high priced beer.

s1artibartfast• 5 years ago

I think they are pointing out the weird menu pricing:

1x23 Oz beer for $27

2x12 Oz beers for $22

Normally drinks are cheaper/Oz for larger sizes.

jimmyvalmer2• 5 years ago

GP is the friend who, when the gang all goes to Vegas, stands stoically behind everyone else playing for s__ts and giggles.

SavantIdiot• 5 years ago

I would say: then don't buy it, don't feed the mania.

But you're a captive audience: flights have no food (or charge a fortune); security won't let you bring food through; and if you only have 20 minutes between long flights, you're basically S-O-L and must pay the prices.

I understand travel isn't a right, and air travel reaaaaaly sucks right now, but it's more than just supply/demand. The "Passenger's Bill of Rights" should extend to "thou shalt not extort a captive audience that you made captive."

Or we all just stop flying and reset the system? I have no idea.

EDIT: Apparently you can bring food through security. I haven't tried again since I was denied a while back, didn't want to waste it. Thanks 'astura' for the link: https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/whatcanibring/...

astura2• 5 years ago

Huh? There's no reason you can't bring your own food through security as long as it's not liquid.

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/whatcanibring/...

alksjdalkj• 5 years ago

Not sure why this is downvoted since it's 100% correct. I always bring food through security, sometimes it gets flagged going through the xray machine but all that happens is TSA has to manually look through your bag. Normally as soon as they see it's food they just let you go, I think it's pretty common.

markkanof• 5 years ago

Yes. I think pretty much anyone that has flown with young children could backup that you can bring food through. We bring all sorts of snacks for the kids. Fresh fruit, crackers, cheese, etc.

ardit332• 5 years ago

La Guardia was renovated/built with taxpayer/public money... and these guys are holding a captive audience which doesn't have much choice. At some point we should require some kind of decency, where the vendor can make some profits, yet it doesn't turn into a total shakedown.

NYC is full of these shady hustler/operator types, trying shake down or make a buck in a place that there is a 'new fool' coming in every day. I have experienced it myself even in harmless things like soccer leagues. People trying to squeeze as much profit as they can.

boring_twenties• 5 years ago

I've brought food on many flights, most recently one from EWR just two weeks ago (a sandwich).

thehappypm2• 5 years ago

I can't believe this is controversial. Go to any airport. You'll see dozens of people eating sandwiches from Ziplock bags. Do they look like they're from Wolfgang Puck?

jdavis7033• 5 years ago

I’ve brought food through multiple times. They probably won’t let you bring in a cup of yoghurt or a can of sardines, but anything that isn’t liquid should be fine.

frankosaurus• 5 years ago

Sardines will definitely get through security, at least at SJC where I usually travel from. More times than not I get pulled aside for inspection though.

wyager2• 5 years ago

You could make most of these issues go away by eliminating the TSA, but its union is so powerful now that we're probably never going to get rid of it. TSA employees are basically their own political welfare class.

triceratops• 5 years ago

security won't let you bring food through

I can count the number of times I've bought food in airports on one hand. You absolutely can bring food through. I've been asked to throw out peanut butter once though.

NullPrefix• 5 years ago

been asked to throw out peanut butter

Because it could be used as a bio weapon?

kenneth4• 5 years ago

Anything viscous (paste, etc) counts as a liquid. I've had them give me shit about mashed potatoes in LAS, and nutella in TXL. But solid foods are totally fine.

MattGaiser• 5 years ago

Isn’t this just because most people aren’t paying?

It is like healthcare benefits. There is a cash price and an insurance price. The insurance price is because the person choosing isn’t the person paying, so there is no reason to care.

lotsofpulp• 5 years ago

I think it is more of the standard ripoff pricing in and around NYC, which I assume is due to all the corruption and government debt.

I feel like facilities in that area are uniquely bad in terms of how expensive yet low quality they are compared to many other metros in the US.

pessimizer2• 5 years ago

It's due to the rent.

Hnrobert424• 5 years ago

Prices in NYC are much higher in general than the rest country, but (surpringly) someone on quora does a much better job of explaining why than your speculation: https://www.quora.com/Why-is-New-York-City-so-expensive-when...

FriedPickles• 5 years ago

Cant wait for a YC startup to build a marketplace matching travelers with extra snacks to hungry folks at the same airport! Hmm or maybe its "just add water" beer you can get through security. What reaction will make ethanol? ;)

injidup• 5 years ago

Mashed potato flakes, water and any ready available fungus.

j-walker• 5 years ago

You don't remember the "Palcahol" debacle?

https://www.al.com/opinion/2015/06/powdered_alcohol_what_it_...

the_only_law2• 5 years ago

About a month ago I had gone to the airport and realized I had completely forgot my headphones. I had limited money on me at the time so I figured I could pick up some cheap ass pair for the flight. Sure prices are inflated but maybe I could get something for $10.

Nope, rows of the mostly painful knockoffs of actual brands for $25-$50 dollars. The type of stuff you’d expect to see in r/crappyoffbrands. The only pairs they had that I’d consider paying for were ones which had the headphone jack, which ofc my phone doesn’t support and the adapter was being sold at something like 100%-200% more than somewhere like Target or BestBuy.

sithadmin11• 5 years ago

I’d often wondered who the hell uses the Best Buy vending machines you often see at US airports.

Then I found myself in the same situation as you in an airport news stand. I think I spent a minute looking at the awful selection of headphones and earbuds before I decided to walk way out of my way to the Best Buy machine.

reiichiroh2• 5 years ago

Are devices pre-charged? That must do a number on the battery lifespan if so

xfitm34• 5 years ago

I once had to buy a macbook in ATL because mine suffered a charge failure. I copied what data I needed over with the remaining battery life and continued my trip. I couldn't return it after without flying to ATL.

b112• 5 years ago

I wonder if this will be the final fate of Bestbuy retail.

A small company, running vending machines in airports, and maybe small towns.

shrikant• 5 years ago

I did this at the Las Vegas McCarran airport once in 2016 when my headphones broke and I really didn't fancy doing the flight all the way back to London using the terrible earphones they hand out in-flight.

Surprisingly got a GREAT deal on a pair of mid-range Sony over-ear headphones for a bit cheaper than what I could see on London in-store prices or even on Amazon :-O I suspect because of some inventory clearance deal? Literally every other SKU in the vending machine was terribly overpriced though, so I was quite happy at this stroke of luck.

I'm still using the headphones to this day, so that was shockingly good value for airport vending machine clearance tat!

Edit: looked it up and I paid $50 for this, which is/was comparable to it's Amazon price at the time -- so not cheaper, but not ridiculously overpriced either.

thehappypm2• 5 years ago

You can usually buy them on planes too, for like $5. They are truly truly horrible, but cheap.

bichiliad• 5 years ago

Apparently, the Chief Strategy Officer of OTG is Larry Schwartz, a Cuomo staffer[1]. The fact that the prices are illegally high (apparently airport concessions may charge no more than 10% higher than "street" pricing for things) combined with the fact that operations are headed by someone close to the institution responsible for enforcing this sort of regulation smells a lot like a racket.

[1] https://twitter.com/MarketUrbanism/status/142235397825221836...

edmundsauto7• 5 years ago

With the extra requirements necessitated by being behind the security checkpoints, I don’t think it would be possible to only have a 10% premium. If this were enforced, I think we would end up with no airport food that was remotely edible.

sneak• 5 years ago

Life (and capitalism) finds a way. A 55" tv is now a few hundred bucks when a few years back a lower res one half the size was $20k.

I don't think $30 beers is a necessity that follows from "someone has to push a case of beers through an x-ray machine".

Hnrobert424• 5 years ago

The food providers don’t pay for the checkpoints.

xfitm34• 5 years ago

It's cost effective. There is separation of duty and the food is scanned just like luggage.

altmind• 5 years ago

where does this "no more than 10% from street pricing" come from? i've seen no airport that charges less than +50% for alcohol.

boulos2• 5 years ago

I don’t think the food or drinks at the Manufactory Food Hall in SFO [1] have that high of a premium. They’re starting from a high base, but I don’t recall it being “the usual” +50%.

[1] https://sf.eater.com/2019/1/22/18193239/manufactory-food-hal...

rasz• 5 years ago

Someone has to provide the service, and if private sector is not interested Cuomo will find a friend/cousin/sister willing to run it, like $3000/month homeless shelters

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WGjCeFyr1g

kerbs• 5 years ago

On the flip side:

I remember scoring a pint of Goose Island Bourbon County Stout for $10.50 (?) At MSP about 4-5 years ago.

To this day the best surprise beer deal I’ve ever had.

refurb4• 5 years ago

How much of this is just targeting business travelers who expense things like meals? Know most non-business travelers won't buy $29 beers?

Reminds me of the high end hotels that charge for wifi - because most people stay for business and they can just expense it.

jurassic• 5 years ago

I thought I had it bad with the $17 yogurt parfait I picked up on my last trip through SFO. $28 beer is next level.

lsllc• 5 years ago

Joe Biden on LaGuardia Airport: 'I must be in some third-world country'

https://www.theverge.com/2014/2/6/5387148/joe-biden-laguardi...

Hnrobert424• 5 years ago

That’s a great reference, and it also puts into context his push for an infrastructure bill. It is clearly something he has cared about for a long time, not just a jobs program to mitigate CoVID’s economic impact.

hellbannedguy• 5 years ago

I worked out at Muir Woods National Monument while recovering from a nervous breakdown during college.

I was a cashier.

I didn't like the place, but my coworkers were unbelievable.

The federal government had the no so brilliant idea of farming out the concessions, and gift shop to the highest bidder. (I don't know exactly how the hiring process goes.)

The federal government basically said, our workers couldn't run a simple business, so let's let a private entity run it, and we will take our cut?

The gift shop sold millions per year.

The business agreement was around 10% of the gift shop sales would go back to the government.

To me that seemed like a good deal. What the corporation Aramark) did was load the place up with hand made items (Burl bowls, etc) in order to get around paying the 10%.

They also paid minimum wage, treated everyone including the managers terribly. The manager was required to be their 6 days a week. He was given the illustrious "Manager" fixed wage. Meaning he/she made less than minimum wage.

The food deal was 14% I believe, which was fair.

So when government wants to pay a low wage, and no benefits, they like to farm out their dirty work.

Looking back--I'm not sure the rangers could run the concessions, or at least the group of rangers I saw out there? I have never seen so many federal employees doing absoulty nothing. I also witnessed maintance workers tossing perfectly good chainsaw, tools into the dumptster. Tye reason being if they were "broken", they could procure more money. And yes--after closing I took those "broken" tools out of the trash, even after being told not to.

The rangers used to get all hyped up if they found a grow site. They would take pictures and slap behinds. What was ironic, is the evidence shed was always broken into?

Oh yea, at the time I felt all federal rangers shouldn't be armed. There was zero crime. Now--because we gas a few mountian lions, I guess they should be packing?

To my co-workers, I miss you guys so much. I hated the job, but loved you people.

(The park used to be free. Now they charge $10. This us our land people. Why are Americans being charged to get into any park, especially a National Monument? It would be very easy to let Americans in for free. They all come through one entrance. You can hike into the park though.)

BeFlatXIII• 5 years ago

why can’t they let Americans in for free?

Population growth. The entry fee serves as a load-balancer to dissuade families who don’t have a specific desire to visit to go there just because it’s not too far away and free. Ok, it’s not just population growth—it’s also that the Internet has made it trivial to discover nearby free attractions, which leads to physical DoS attacks.

https://www.ribbonfarm.com/2013/04/03/the-locust-economy/

rtpg2• 5 years ago

I know why but it kills me that airports around the world don't just let "normal restaurants" come in and do their thing. Like mentioned in comments, even known stuff is basically run by a mega-franchisee so you don't even get the good stuff for the most part.

I get that some airports, there are logistics issues and whatnot. But the airport premiums for food that is just so messy is super frustrating.

I like how Narita at least has a bunch of restaurants before security that are not nearly as awful as what is behind the gates, but come on...

ajmurmann2• 5 years ago

"I know why"

What's the "why"? Airports are infrastructure and shouldn't be corporations that maximize profits at all costs. As the airport operator it should be pretty easy to create a well-functioning market. Just avoid given to many businesses inside the airport to the same operator and make sure they compete to the death.

rtpg2• 5 years ago

The reason is because airport operators, quite simply, don't care. There is a company that shows up and says "we can provide restaurants for everything in your airport". You check off the box of "provide services behind the security gate". They get to take their big profits.

And it's a captive market! What, you're not going to take a plan out of Dallas cuz you hate DFW? No! You're in Dallas! You don't have that much of a choice in the first place.

Airport operators of course benefit from _some_ customer satisfaction (in the same way that airliners feed people to keep the peace in the planes themselves on int'l flights). It's not like there's _no_ feedback loop. But "my beer is too expensive" is not going to register very high on their concerns.

There are also "legitimate" issues around how (especially behind security gates) there are logistics costs in running stuff. It's not like your delivery person can easily just show up at your doorstep with your frozen steaks or whatever you need to make food. But if they can put vending machines with reasonable costs at the top of Mt Takao, I feel like they could do a _bit_ better here.

chipotle_coyote• 5 years ago

I'm apparently the weirdo, since -- in pre-Covid times, to be clear -- I liked explicitly scheduling longer layovers, ideally 90+ minutes, so I could look around and find a place for a sit-down meal. Almost any larger airport I've been through, and even some of the smaller ones, had at least a few restaurants which were spinoffs of local restaurants in that area, with their own unique menus, kitchens specific to the restaurant, and sometimes surprisingly good food. I actually looked forward to traveling sometimes.

In general, I've found that the fast food places in airport "food courts" are the worst food experiences you get in American airports: the prices tend to be seriously jacked up and the menu options are more limited. This isn't to say that the sit-down places are bargains, but they're usually not so much more expensive than quick service that it isn't worth the price (to me) for the better food and more relaxed atmosphere.

I have, for the record, never seen a $28.50 beer at an airport. I'm pretty sure I've seen $12+ beers. You can blame that on the concession operators, but you can also blame it on the airport authority that lets them do that; there are some counties that control how much, if at all, airport outposts of chains can raise prices compared to their non-airport locations in the same county.

2Gkashmiri• 5 years ago

In indis at least, there is this "airports authority of india" which leases shops to well retailers and stuff. What they do is, they set a monthly rent and that has to be paid. So last 2 years there hasnt been any air travel but guess what, AAI demands their rent. As a result, I have seen 60+ year old shops fold because they cannot pay the rent when there is no income. Either that or they have to Jack up the prices to make up for the rent paid for the time no one was flying causing high prices.

koyote2• 5 years ago

I liked explicitly scheduling longer layovers, ideally 90+ minutes, so I could look around and find a place for a sit-down meal

I usually do the same and there's some great stuff available in places like HKG or SIN.

It's a bad idea in a place like ZHR where a simple burger cost nearly 30CHF...

jeffbee• 5 years ago

Beef is expensive in Switzerland :=) There is a Confiserie Sprüngli in that airport, and that's where I always pick up a sandwich. It's as good as the ones in town.

snovv_crash• 5 years ago

That's the normal price of a burger in Zurich though, nothing to do with airports.

astatine• 5 years ago

Just before COVID hit, there was an interesting thing going on in BLR Airport. You could order a meal (on Swiggy) from a restaurant near the airport and get it delivered to a gate number. No beverages, due to the security gates it had to pass through, but you had a refreshingly wide variety of options at reasonable prices.

hardwaregeek• 5 years ago

The one redeeming quality of Laguardia and JFK is the Shake Shack. I never thought I'd herald a fast food place opening but it's so much better than anything else.

boulos2• 5 years ago

I will admit to considering going into the “wrong” half of the international terminal at SFO to eat at Tartine or Kin Khao instead [1] and then head over to my flight. If the security line is short enough, it’s kind of worth it.

[1] https://sf.eater.com/2019/1/22/18193239/manufactory-food-hal...

cik• 5 years ago

Planet Money had a great podcast (https://www.npr.org/2018/11/22/670313841/atlanta-falcons-cut...) examining the other approach, the Atlanta Falcons lowering their food cost overall. I don't know if they continued down this path, but a quick search shows that it seems like they maintained low prices (https://mercedesbenzstadium.com/food-beverage/).

dagw2• 5 years ago

My flight got cancelled out of Stockholm once and I was given the standard 'dinner' voucher the airlines give out. Not being particularly hungry, I walked up to the cheapest looking pub like place that would take this voucher and ordered a beer and some peanuts, and that alone cost more than what my food voucher was for.

meristohm• 5 years ago

Why not have a high price in travel hubs for a luxury that tends to reduce the Adult and let out the Child in us? (per Games People Play, a book on Transactional Analysis by Eric Berne, 1964) Seems like a public safety concern. How’s a high price on alcohol working out for Norway?

sizzle• 5 years ago

Portland’s PDX airport has awesome food carts inside from local joints. Delicious foods, awesome variety, fair prices.

$28.50 Beer at LaGuardia Sparks Audit of New York Airport Concession Prices

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