REDBRIDGE: Restaurants defend price of water

11:16am Thursday 14th February 2008

RESTAURANT-GOERS are fed up with only being offered expensive mineral water when they go out for meals, according to a new survey.

But restaurateurs in Woodford and Wanstead say if they want a freebie from the tap, all customers have to do is ask.

The National Consumer Council has published new research which reveals nine out of ten restaurants are pushing customers to pay over the odds for bottled water and only one per cent are offering tap water as a free alternative.

Despite most people not being able to tell the difference, and tap water being a greener alternative as it eliminates the use of plastic bottles, the report says one in five people still feel embarrassed to ask for it.

Ray Ponkaj, owner and Manager of Bipasha Tandoori restaurant in Nightingale Lane, Wans-tead, said he was happy to serve both.

"We don't mind if people opt for mineral water or tap when they're eating, It's really down to personal taste and I drink tap water because I can't tell the difference," he said.

In a blind taste test at the end of last year, water from a London tap was rated third among 23 mineral waters by a panel of experts including a wine critic and a top sommelier.

Other restaurateurs in the area seemed to agree, even if tap was not to their own taste.

Andrea Fodor, who manages Prezzo in Johnston Road, Woodford Green, said she "hated" the taste herself.

"I don't really understand why people want to drink it because for me it tastes of chlorine," she said.

"If they do though it's totally their choice and obviously we wouldn't look down on customers."

But Jan Fahri, the manager of Fuus mediterranean restaurant in George Lane, believes it is wrong to give tap water for free when it costs him over £2,000 a year.

He said: "My water supply is not free, so I don't think it should be given away for free.

"If I go for dinner out I wouldn't ask for tap water, I would feel a bit embarrased. And I don't like the taste. I only drink bottled water."

Water connoisseur Fran-cesco Mirti, manager of Adriatico in High Road, Woodford Green, said most of the bottle water sold in shops is not as good as tap water, and he will often choose it over a bottled brand.

He said: "We don't make money from tap water, but we provide a service and that is what counts. We make the customers happy and that is why we achieve what we want."

The manager of Nino Cucina's in George Lane took an objective view. He said: "Obviously it's not good for us if people drink tap water, but we always supply it if they want it."