Miracles do happen after all. Last year, the traditional Donisl pub lowered its beer prices. And that’s in the middle of downtown Munich. Since then, you can get a half-liter here for €4.90 instead of the previous €6.20. Now other pub owners are following suit by also lowering their beer prices in January —at least for the time being.
Falling beer prices thanks to falling VAT
Photo: Emil Kalibradov/Unsplash
At the beginning of this year, VAT in the restaurant industry fell from 19% to 7 %. While this was a cause for celebration for operators, it should not change anything for guests: most establishments do not plan to pass on the VAT reduction to their customers. However, one Munich restaurateur is now breaking ranks and announcing that he will lower at least some of the prices in his establishments.
Constantin Wahl is the operator of the Haxnbauer and the Tegernseer im Tal. In the latter, a half-liter of Tegernseer Hell has cost only €4.50 since January 16, instead of €5.70 as before. At the Haxenbauer , the price of a half-liter has also been reduced from €5.70 to €4.80. Wheat beer and non-alcoholic beers are now cheaper too. However, food prices remain unchanged, which Wahl attributes to the rise in food prices. The reduced beer prices are to remain in place until June 30, 2026.
Other pubs follow suit
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Constantin Wahl’s pubs in the valley are not the only ones reducing their prices. You can now get beer cheaper elsewhere in Munich too. In addition to the aforementioned Donisl, the price of a half-liter of Augustiner is also dropping from €4.50 to €4 at the Fesch pub on Müllerstraße and the new fesch on Kirchsteig. At the Eder Wirt on Schwanthaler Höhe, a half-liter of Schönramer now costs €4.50 instead of €5.10.
At Giesinger Bräu, 90% of the dishes are now available at lower prices, and a €100 food voucher now costs €85. The same applies to vouchers at the Saletta pub in Untergiesing. It remains to be seen whether the VAT reduction will also have a positive effect on this year’s beer prices at the Oktoberfest. As these have risen steadily in recent years, price stability would at least be desirable.