Bob Bob Ricard to take airline pricing model

Bob Bob Ricard, the Soho restaurant famed for its ‘press for Champagne’ button, is to take a novel approach to pricing inspired by the airline industry, charging less at off-peak times.

As reported by Bloomberg, the diner deluxe will charge 25% less for its dishes at off-peak times of the week like Monday lunchtime, and 15% less during mid-peak times like Tuesday and Sunday nights.

Diners will have to pay full whack at peak times like Friday and Saturday night.

The new pricing model means the likes of lobster mac & cheese will cost £20.50 off-peak rather than £26.50, while you could save £13 on 20g of Oscietra caviar if you dine off-peak.

The idea is being pioneered by the restaurant’s Russian owner, Leonid Shutov, who is due to open a second site, Bob Bob Cité in the ‘Cheesgrater’ building on Leadenhall Street in east London this year.

“Airlines wouldn’t be able to exist unless you could balance supply and demand. Everything that we have taken that is widely accepted in the modern economy and applied to restaurants seems to have worked,” Shutov told Bloomberg.

While the average spend at Bob Bob Ricard is around £100 per person, the occupancy of the restaurant varies wildly depending on the time of the week, with Monday being the quietest time and Saturday night the busiest.

“To stay competitive we need to be able to serve people a fantastic lunch without charging ridiculous prices. One of the ways of doing that is ensuring a more even occupancy throughout the week,” Shutov told Bloomberg.

“I realise it’s a bit of a brave decision because any departure from the standard model involves risk. But I am not really worried. We’re not changing the menu. We are just saying that on certain days it will cost less,” he added. Sadly, the flexible pricing model only currently applies to food.