There is a row brewing at Jeremy Clarkson’s newly opened pub as the price of food and drink divides fans, with some claiming he is ‘ripping people off’.
The Farmer’s Dog in Asthall, Oxfordshire officially opened on Friday last week, with thousands of Clarkson fans queuing for up to fours hours in an attempt to get into the £1million venue – which will undoubtedly feature on the next season of his Amazon series Clarkson’s Farm.
People waited patiently for a taste of his £6 pint of Hawkstone beer or the chance to tuck into an £18 plate of sausage and mash.
One disgruntled Instagram user slammed the prices as ‘sick’ and said: ‘Really necessary to charge those prices? Absolutely ripping people off because it’s on TV.’
But Clarkson defended the prices and said: ‘Every single thing was grown by British farmers, even the black pepper and sugar!’
The TV star said using only British produce meant that profit margins would be much lower at The Farmer’s Dog.
He explained using pork from his Diddly Squat farm would cost more to turn into a sausage than imported pig meat.
Clarkson said: ‘It costs us 0.74p to get a sausage into here, but if I buy imported pig meat it is 0.18. There is something wrong with the food system in this country.’
But buying directly from local producers and guaranteeing fair pay for British farmers means an increase in price for pub customers.
Hawkstone IPA, Hawkstone Premium, Hawkstone Hedgerow Cider, and Hawkstone Cider all come in at £6 a pint, a half-pint will set punters back £3.10.
Hawkstone Session Lager comes in at the fractionally cheaper cost of £5.50 per pint, which is the same price for a Hawkstone Pils, Hawkstone Breeze, and cask ale – halves of which are £2.90.
The pub also sells cans of alcohol-free Hawkstone Spa lager for £3.10.
Along with steak pie and mash (£19), other main courses include gammon steak (£19), sausages and mash (£18), as well as a vegetable and cheddar crumble (£15).
Puddings cost around £8 with both apple crumble and cheesecake on the menu.
Other produce from Diddly Squat Farm is also available to purchase, with Clarkson’s Hot Seed Beer Mustard priced at £6.
Meanwhile, his interestingly-titled ‘B*****s candle’ is priced at £22 for one or you can buy two for £39.
As some punters grumbled over the eye-watering prices, others have jumped in to defend the Grand Tour presenter.
One staunch Clarkson defender said: ‘Please stop complaining about the prices. You can’t compare them to a “normal” pub, where food is sourced by huge national wholesalers.’
They continued: ‘Worth a few extra quid in my book, as is the experience in visiting.’
Another Clarkson fan put it plainly and said: ‘If you don’t like the prices, don’t go! It’s really that simple!’