Prices in Czech restaurants, pubs and cafés have climbed sharply since 2019, the last full year before the pandemic.

According to data from the cash register system provider Dotykačka, which is widely used across the country’s hospitality sector, the average increase has reached 56 percent.

That means items that cost 100 CZK in 2019 now typically cost around 156 CZK. Some categories, however, have risen even faster.

Dotykačka analysed price development in four common menu items and drinks: beer, schnitzel, coffee and Caesar salad. The results show uneven growth across the sector, with drinks and main dishes increasing more than salads.

Caesar salad recorded the smallest rise, up 47 percent compared with 2019. All other monitored items exceeded the average growth rate.

Beer prices rose by around 60 percent over the period. For several years, increases followed the general trend in the hospitality sector, but a sharper jump came in 2024 after VAT changes on draft beer, which increased from 10 to 21 percent as part of broader fiscal consolidation measures.

Brewers and industry representatives are now calling for a reversal of the tax increase. “We are asking the government to consider brewing as a strategic sector with not only economic but also social importance,” said Tomáš Slunečko, executive director of the Czech Union of Brewers and Maltsters.

At the same time, consumption patterns are shifting. According to Dotykačka, beer sales in restaurants and pubs fell by roughly 5 percent in the past year alone, marking the sharpest drop since the pandemic period. When customers do order beer, they are increasingly choosing standard lager, often referred to locally as “twelve”.

Vladimír Syrový, who leads market and data research at Dotykačka, said beer drinking habits have been moving away from pubs and restaurants for some time. “Instead of meeting in hospitality venues, people increasingly drink beer at home, often bought in supermarkets,” he said.

Two decades ago, beer sales were roughly evenly split between on-trade and off-trade consumption. Today, that ratio has shifted to about 70 to 30 in favour of retail sales in bottles and cans. This change has reduced beer’s importance as a revenue source for restaurants.

Beer once accounted for around 21 percent of total hospitality revenue in Czechia. Today, it represents roughly 15 percent.

Despite this decline, one segment continues to grow: non-alcoholic beer. Both flavoured and unflavoured versions are gaining popularity, rising from about 6 percent of beer sales before the pandemic to nearly 11 percent today.

Among the four tracked items, schnitzel recorded a 65 percent increase compared with 2019, placing it above the overall average. Coffee showed the steepest rise of all, increasing by 68 percent over the same period.

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