
The venerable lion beer
Lion Beer. Our brew is competitive with any international beer and far superior to the local Carlsberg. But how much does it cost? The printed price is Rs. 140 but prices vary widely around Colombo. We called 21 places and put together a list, what we call the Lion Index.
Note that this isn't comprehensive. We just called some places we know and/or liked and asked/calculated what 675 ml worth (the big bottle) would cost.
What were the results? The cheapest places are obviously the dodgy bars, but Park Street Mews and Barefoot are surprisingly affordable. The higher end restaurants and pubs are not.
The Graph

Here's the results. We've assumed that the base price is Rs. 140, that's the number in black (Cost). That plus the red bar is the menu price, so the difference is their profit. We've also calculated what 10% service and 13% taxes will do to your bill. Put it all together and you can get a Rs. 140 beer pushing 500, easy.
The Table
|
Menu Price |
Total (++) |
Profit |
Price/ml |
Price (Unit) |
Unit |
Randoli |
190 |
234 |
50 |
0.30 |
190 |
625 |
Ex-Servicemen's |
190 |
234 |
50 |
0.30 |
190 |
625 |
Station |
200 |
246 |
60 |
0.32 |
200 |
625 |
Park Street Mews |
250 |
246 |
110 |
0.40 |
250 |
625 |
Buba |
260 |
320 |
120 |
0.42 |
260 |
625 |
New Colonial |
270 |
332 |
130 |
0.43 |
270 |
625 |
Barefoot |
300 |
369 |
160 |
0.48 |
300 |
625 |
White Horse |
300 |
369 |
160 |
0.48 |
300 |
625 |
Fort Cafe* |
333 |
410 |
193 |
0.53 |
160 |
300 |
O! Bar* |
350 |
431 |
210 |
0.56 |
185 |
330 |
Harbour Room |
370 |
455 |
230 |
0.59 |
370 |
625 |
Cricket Club |
385 |
474 |
245 |
0.62 |
385 |
625 |
Colombo Courtyard |
400 |
492 |
260 |
0.42 |
400 |
625 |
Havelock Bungalow |
425 |
523 |
285 |
0.68 |
385 |
625 |
7 Degrees |
430 |
529 |
290 |
0.69 |
430 |
625 |
Inn On The Green |
430 |
529 |
290 |
0.69 |
430 |
625 |
Casa Colombo |
450 |
554 |
310 |
0.72 |
450 |
625 |
Rize |
450 |
554 |
310 |
0.72 |
450 |
625 |
Cheers |
450 |
554 |
310 |
0.72 |
450 |
625 |
Gallery |
475 |
584 |
335 |
0.76 |
475 |
625 |
Amuseum |
1136 |
1398 |
996 |
1.82 |
600 |
300 |
Note that we actually checked 21 places, but the prices at Amuseum (a nightclub) were so insane (Rs. 600 for a small bottle) that we left them off the graph. We called another club - Kama - but they wouldn't give us a price, meaning it's nearing infinity. Those guys are rude and that club is unpleasant and too often violent.
If you're drinking out you can expect to pay between
Rs. 234 and Rs. 584 for a bottle of Lion - always at least about Rs. 100 above retail. A bottle can push over 1,000 at nightclubs, but we include that only for reference. It's really apples and oranges.
A bottle of Lion is cheaper at dodgier bars like
Randoli and the Ex-Servicemen's club, but there is a definite drop off in terms of ambiance there. No women. The dodgier establishments, as charming as they may be to men, really aren't very woman friendly. They seem rooted in the assumption that women don't (or shouldn't) drink - and that ladies certainly don't like lager. While their minimal profit-taking of Rs. 50 is admirable, the ability for men and women to go out together (inconspicuously) is worth a bit more.
The Conclusion
The cheapest (and probably best) option would be to head over to Keells (
not Cargills, which stocks only their horrendous brews, not Lion), buy some bottles and have friends over. Going out often works out to be pretty expensive, and if you're a woman this means you're confined to a rotation of the same sort of places - almost all of which belong in the mid to expensive range. That being said, it is nice to go out for a beer sometimes.
The Station is pretty affordable, and suprisingly so is
Park Street Mews. Barefoot is the classic Sunday or any day place for a cold beer, and they don't come out too bad as well.
Delete Comment
CaptainObvious
Fancy places have more of a mark up… say it ain't so
Sulare
Didn't you guys check out Lotus Leaf?
tony
Were your guys rejected by the gate at kama ? LMAO
Asvajit
"Lion Beer. Our brew is competitive with any international beer…" aka yeah right.
alex medlicott
"Our brew is … far superior to the local Carlsberg"
I though you Lion guys brewed Carlsberg in Sri Lanka? So how come it is inferior??? Do Carlsberg know what you are publishing here???
indi YAMU STAFF
We are not Lion Breweries. Our brew refers to the fact that Lion is the beer that most of us at YAMU prefer
realskullzero
awesome post indi, this index will come in handy, and im sure you have noticed how the beer wars have tensed up lately, with Cargills rejecting Lion products and Three Coins going on a very aggressive promotion campaign in local restaurants…some offer the Sando and Three Coins brands instead of Speacial brew :)
Nishan
“Lion Beer. Our brew is competitive with any international beer…” - Don't be silly. While it is a perfectly acceptable beer it's hardly world-class. If you are writing about a topic, you should have some basic knowledge about it.
Darshan
This is wrong … At O it's 140 @ fort cafe 160 who did this , bad for your website
indi YAMU STAFF
O and Fort don't sell the big bottles, so we took their prices and calculated what 625 ml would cost. Those are the prices for draught (330 and 300 ml, respectively). Actually those aren't the prices, the real prices are 185 and 160 for O and Fort Cafe.
Since we're comparing the prices of 625 ml worth, we calculated the price per ml and multiplied to get a price for that value, as mentioned in the post.
mew_lobo
You guys should check out Machang Pubs.
http://www.facebook.com/MachangPubs
They seem to have the lowest price for Lion beer. Went to one recently (in Kandy), service charge was only included for food, not for the beer. Guess it must be the same for all of them.
Harry Mendis
Of course Lion is cheaper is Machang Pubs and Brewery by O, because LIon owns these outlets. That's how they can undercut the prices other pubs, like me, have to sell at. They should not undercut their own customers.
k
Interesting work! Just curious, how/why did chopsticks and steamboat (nawala) and mount grill not make the list? Also Summer Garden is quite female/family friendly
Mike
How can you compare clubs to pubs etcc ? its doesn't make sense and what qualifications do youl even have to be critics? ( its like comparing pillawoos to cinnoman grand) . ex Kama Colombo without any doubt is the best and the most exclusive club in the country , and you guys try to gt prices over the?
Mike
Phone*
SW
What are the preferred choices to have some beer in Mount Lavinia ?
shan
this is awesome tks guys this helps a lot
BIG_DADDY
good job guys
Gihan
Hey Why insult 3 coins… It tastes much better than the watery Lion….
Nalaka
Yes Gihan you are correct 3 coins beer is better lion use 70% rice to produce beer. So it not a good beer. Try red ale and power from 3 coins they also better brands
Marlong
Dont wanna spoil the fun here for 3 coins and Lion, but my preference is Carlsburg. Cant beat the light and very subtle underlying flavour of the malt.
vishkid
Good post - I can't see why some people have their knickers in a twist over this. A price of a beer at each of these (bar, pub, club or her majesty's royal pukka winery) would be a reasonably good indicator of your total damage at the joint. We all know the service and the atmosphere will be different; that's what the reviews are for. This index serves a different purpose.
none
Buba currency is totally wrong. :P
Prasad
Buba price is incorrect. I was there few weeks back. It was Rs. 280 for 500ml can.
Perera
Three coins tastes like piss, lion is the best beer in SL Cargills does this to every competitive product they re shitting in their pants for competition most people in SL drink lion that explains the quality & the size of the business
Perera
Machan pubs & O has given consumers affordable pricing & convenience I think people should b grateful for them
sunnyleone
Yeah… the lotus is leaf surprisingly good. Plus they do good grubs.
Dinesh
Mona brand eka unath beer kiyanne chu bonawa wage ekak. mage yaluwo goda denek mhuna abul karagena amaruwen beela passe anith eunta phenna gathi wage pennanawa. Amoma karanne ekema thamai. pissu munta.
Dinesh
I think this YAMU team members took contract fro LION company. Y they always try 2 promote lion beer?
ThilinaDinesh
Comment karama ai ain karanne? bayada minissu aththa dagani kiyala
Sanjayajlr
This is damn good review you guys…this and Yamu's guide to Colombo's "Dodgy bars" ;o)
Raj
Good research….but have to update it at-least annually
ravi
lion beer is on par with international, country specific brands. before blaming yamu it would nice if you did some research yourself. as a srilankan having lived half of his life overseas i`m proud of lion beer - also do all of us a favour and check out a documentary called beer wars