One venue’s happy hour rule that each patron only have one drink at a time has sparked outrage.
However, the St George Motor Boat Club in Sydney’s south is enforcing a rule that threatens to confiscate any extra-full drinks sitting in front of a customer that they don’t immediately consume during happy hours.
The club’s happy hour runs from 4pm to 6pm on weekdays and schooners cost just $4, compared to the usual price of $5.80.
However, one customer noticed a catch with a sign at the bar warning of ‘no drink stacking’.
“Please note that if a customer has more than 1.5 schooners in front of them during Happy Hour, the entire schooner will be impounded,” the sign reads.
This sign at the St George Motor Boat Club in Sydney’s south warns drinkers they won’t be able to buy cheap drinks during happy hour
After the drinker shared an image of the sign on social media, many were critical of the club.
One person even argued that the rule “completely undermines the purpose of happy hour,” while another said the sessions should be renamed “grumpy hour.”
Others stated that buying rounds for a table could easily result in one or two drinks ending up for one drinker.
Some believed the rule would make customers finish their drinks more quickly for fear of losing them.
However, Adrian Vermeulen, chief executive of the St George Motor Boat Club, said the rule was introduced nine months ago to enforce ‘strict rules on responsible drinking’.
“The rule was introduced when visiting members (not locals) join our happy hour and are stunned by $4 schooners,” Mr Vermeulen shared. Yahoo News.
“In their excitement, they tend to buy two or three drinks at a time.”
During happy hour on weekdays from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM, the club is offering Schooners beer for just $4, down from the regular price of $5.80
“Can you imagine eight members at a high table full of full schooners because happy hour is over in ten minutes?”
He said the rule had only been enforced twice and that “habitual offenders” had repeatedly ignored warnings.
“In an effort to curb this behavior, we have warned our members that ‘stacking drinks’ is not responsible,” he said.
Aussies will start paying for their alcohol from next week.
The alcohol tax will increase on February 1 and is expected to amount to about two to three percent.
The rates are based on the consumer price index, which measures inflation, meaning the higher the inflation, the more the cost of alcohol increases.
George Motor Boat Club CEO has defended the ‘no drink stacking’ rule, saying non-locals were taking advantage of the club’s cheap prices
This will increase the tax on a pint by around 90 cents, with a $55 carton of beer attracting a $20 charge on top of the GST.
Rampant inflation has already driven up costs for Australian consumers by 12.5 percent in less than two years.
There’s even worse news for alcohol drinkers: some cocktails in Australian bars will cost more than $24 from February 1.
Australia already has the third highest liquor tax in the world, prompting the hospitality industry to battle the threatened increase and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese calling for a freeze on the ‘un-Australian’ tax.