Nightlife is Changing: $15 Pints Might be the Reason

By Monty Jacka

Topic: Hospitality Industry

Friday, 10 July 2026, at 9:20 am

People say that drinks are too expensive, so they buy fewer when they go out and look for discounts.

In short:

Seven pubs in Hobart closed because the company that owned them had financial problems, partly due to people's changing behavior.

The manager of another venue and people out at night say that drinking habits have changed, and a full dance floor does not always mean a busy bar.

What's next?

This weekend will be the first since many venues closed, and the manager of a bar is not sure what to expect.

Dinesh Khadka manages a bar in Hobart and has seen how people's drinking habits are changing.

Changing consumer behavior was one reason seven venues in Hobart closed suddenly.

Some nights, the bar where Dinesh Khadka works is very busy, but this does not always mean the bartenders are busy.

You would expect the bartenders to be very busy on such nights, making many drinks for the customers.

Dinesh Khadka has seen a change in how customers drink.

But according to Mr. Khadka, a busy dance floor does not always mean a busy night for the bar staff.

There have been nights when the floor was full, and everyone was having fun, but the bar was not busy.

Mr. Khadka said that people's attitudes towards going out have affected hospitality venues, with crowds coming later and young people ordering fewer drinks.

As drinking habits change, a full dance floor does not necessarily mean a busy night for the bar staff.

'Where are the young people?'

Wednesday nights used to be 'student night' in Hobart, but now it is quieter.

This week, there were fewer students, and the vibe had changed, with the high cost of alcohol being the main reason.

Jade Jesenkovic remembers when nights out were cheaper, with $2 happy hour pints and cheaper cigarettes.

Jade Jesenkovic says she does not see many young people when she goes out.

Going to the pub now is depressing because there are no young people, and that is sad.

Now, people have house parties because the nightlife is not exciting.

Keegan Richardson said the $15 he paid for his beer was too expensive.

Keegan Richardson says buying drinks at bars is expensive.

You have to drink at home before going out because it is too expensive otherwise.

The Cargo and Jack Greene bars on Salamanca Place have now closed.

Pre-drinks and discount apps help with the high cost of going out.

University student Jack Muir also pre-drinks to avoid the high prices at pubs and looks for discounts.

'You sort of look for the specials and do a pre-drink if you're going out,' he said.

Caleb O'Neal said a night at the pub was 'definitely quite expensive' and felt like a luxury.

His friend Austin Allison-Hall said they were more aware of the cost of drinks and tried to save money.

Austin Allison-Hall and Caleb O'Neal say they and their friends are more conscious of the cost of drinks.

Another way people save money is by using discount apps to find cheaper meals and drinks.

Nora Merralls said she used these apps after noticing drinks were becoming more expensive.

'There's almost a bit more of a social acceptance to using these types of things,' she said.

'People are maybe not as flush as they once were and still want to go out.'

Nora Merralls says discount apps are one way to save money on drinks and meals out.

Hobart resident Matthew Bicket said the rising cost of living meant he had to watch his budget, especially when spending $12 or $14 on a beer.

He recalled Salamanca being busy on both Friday and Saturday nights, but now people choose just one night to go out.

'Now it's sort of one of those nights that's usually pretty big and the other one's pretty dead,' Mr. Bicket said.

Matthew Bicket says while it used to be busy on both nights, now only one night is busy.

Costly nightlife is 'detrimental' to keeping young people.

Fergus Hadley told the ABC that there were not enough 'uni discounts' or incentives for young people to go out.

He said the alcohol tax made sense but was affecting young Tasmanians' ability to socialize by making drinks more expensive.

'When you're in a state like this, which is losing a lot of young people, it's extremely detrimental,' he said.

'Things have become so expensive and so restrictive in terms of going out.'

Fergus Hadley says more discounts are needed to encourage young people to go out.

While the cost of drinks was a common complaint, many people said they still found ways to socialize.

Ms. Jesenkovic said she could not imagine not catching up with friends over a drink.

'I'm not going to go home and go through coupons and be like 'I'm going to get a sausage for a dollar'. Like, f*** that. I'm going to go get a beer.'

For hospitality operators, individual spending decisions are becoming bigger challenges for the industry.

The Republic Bar and Cafe is one of the seven Hobart venues that closed on Monday.

Live music incentive proposed.

From his Salamanca bar, Mr. Khadka said the problems went beyond the venues themselves.

He said the hospitality sector benefited from events like Dark Mofo and should focus on creating more major drawcards.

'It seems like Hobart doesn't have enough people, so the only thing you need is to give people from interstate or international reasons to come down here,' he said.

Pub Banc Group and Hotel Banc Group, owners of seven Hobart venues, have gone into voluntary administration.

'It should be coming from a high level, where they should be pushing more of these kinds of events.'

Acting Premier Bridget Archer proposed a financial incentive for Tasmanian pubs and clubs to host live music.

Under the proposed pilot program, pubs, hotels, and clubs could claim a rebate equal to 50% of what they spend on live music performers and associated costs.

If the Commonwealth accepted the proposal, it would be funded by a hit to the alcohol excise, which is collected by the federal government.

Republic Bar & Cafe, a Hobart bar, is one of the venues affected by the voluntary administration of Pub Banc Group.

Ms. Archer said the more a venue invested in live music, the more support it would receive.

'More live music means more people through the door, more customers in town, more activity in our regions, and more opportunities for local businesses,' she said.

A House of Representatives parliamentary committee recommended the federal government investigate the potential benefits of a tax offset for the live music industry.

First weekend since major closures.

This weekend will be the first since the sudden closure of the Hotel Banc and Pub Banc venues, affecting the city's nightlife.

Mr. Khadka said he was unsure whether the closures would bring more people to his business or drive them away from Salamanca.

'Any venue going down somehow negatively affects Salamanca, because people living in, let's say, New Norfolk … they see all over the news, the venues are shutting,' he said.

'They'll be like … 'maybe we just do a barbecue [at] home and then stick to our local club', and then nobody's coming to Salamanca.

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