Water Menus Gain Traction as Restaurants Seek Non-Alcoholic Revenue Streams (theguardian.com)
- Reference: 0178973344
- News link: https://slashdot.org/story/25/09/02/0623209/water-menus-gain-traction-as-restaurants-seek-non-alcoholic-revenue-streams
- Source link: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/aug/28/water-sommeliers-rival-wine-terroir
Water sommelier Doran Binder, who created the menu and founded Crag spring water, reports 7 million monthly social media views for water content. The movement extends beyond Britain -- over a dozen US restaurants maintain water lists, while new producers like Hampshire's Chorq plan champagne-style bottles with corks. Michael Mascha's FineWaters has certified more than 100 water sommeliers globally as demand grows for waters distinguished by mineral content ranging from 14 to 3,300 milligrams per liter of dissolved solids.
[1] https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/aug/28/water-sommeliers-rival-wine-terroir
$25.70? (Score:3)
It better have plenty of electrolytes in it.
Re: (Score:3)
do you crave it ?
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
It's what plants crave. If it is good for plants, it must be good for me.
I wouldn't be drinking toilet water.
Re: (Score:3)
> It better have plenty of electrolytes in it.
I found a paper that used statistical analysis of waters of Portugal [1]https://www.sciencedirect.com/... [sciencedirect.com] (paywalled) According to the paper, Salus-Vidago is indeed very high in electrolytes. It is a sparkling water, so high HCO3- in any case, and consequently high counterions as well (e.g. Na+).
Snippets:
* Fig. 3 displays proles of HCO3- of all the 39 waters sampled. About 12.8% have concentrations higher than 1000 mg/L HCO3- (Campilho, Salus-Vidago, ...
* and 23.1% higher than 100 mg/L Na+ (Campilho, Salus-Vid
[1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0375674210001159
Re: (Score:3)
Salus in the name is a bit of a clue...
Great (Score:3)
Next thing you know the price of booze is gonna go up because there's little demand for it, while the price of water has gone up as well. Looks like more money for all the greedy bastards.
Re: (Score:1)
> Looks like more money for all the greedy bastards.
Then don't give them your money.
I'm confused on how people like Donald Trump and Elon Musk are hated for their wealth but this doesn't land on men like Tom Cruise or Leo DiCaprio. I know the wealth disparity isn't quite the same there but these are all insanely wealthy men, I'm thinking that someone that made money building electric cars or nice hotels is at least mildly more productive for human society than having a pretty face and doing "make believe" in front of a camera for money. I can get any child
I must be weird (Score:3)
To me, any water with minerals kind of tastes a bit off. My favorite bottled water is Aquafina (basically the highly purified tap water Pepsi starts with for their sodas), [1]and it's almost as mineral-free as distilled water. [pepsico.com]
[1] https://contact.pepsico.com/aquafina/article/do-you-add-fluoride-sodium-or-minerals-to-your-water
Not microplastic free though (Score:3)
Plastic bottles start to shed microplastics into their contents almost the minute they're filled up. Even more if they get crunched or bashed.
Re: (Score:2)
That's why the more expensive brands of water come in glass bottles...
Re: I must be weird (Score:1)
Or just get an RO at home and you have unlimited âoeAquafinaâ on tap
Re: (Score:2)
They'll never be that rare.
Re: (Score:3)
Just a friendly reminder that Evian spelled backwards, well, you get the picture.
Young people drink less alcohol (Score:3)
but take more chemical drugs instead (kinda understandable, hardly anything is as bad as an alkohol intoxination). Bars aren't allowed to sell chemical drugs, but users drink a lot of water -> make water premium. Obviously, in this case, it's mostly about greedy restaurant owners selling overpriced stuff to people who are so stupid that they buy stuff just because it's overpriced. Imho, if you pay $25 for a bottle of water that has been flown in from Portugal, you should be instantly disposessed. But while there's no cure for stupid, imho this is just one facet of a greater trend.
I refer you to P T Barnum (Score:2)
And his famous quote.
Why all the hassle? (Score:2)
Maybe I should start selling Veblen vouchers as a proof of conspicuous consumption propensity.
I remember a Johnny Carson sketch (Score:3)
The Tonight Show video crew was surreptitiously visiting the secret spring where Perrier water came from. When they reached the source and slowly panned out, it turned out to just be a French guy filling empty bottles from a toilet.
SCAM bottled water (Score:1)
[1]https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
This guys did it so well -- just watch. Bottled water is a SCAM.
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=EzVdf8NlHqY
Why not just abandon the scam? (Score:2)
Just raise the prices and abandon the sommellier scam. Then they can let the chef be a bit adventurous and experiment with liquid flavours and mouthfeel too outside of soup.
It's such monumental cowardice to see molecular cooking abandon most conventions and then do wine pairings.
Re: (Score:2)
> Just raise the prices and abandon the sommellier scam.
the sommellier scam is the whole (selling) point. these people aren't paying for water (or wine, for that matter), they're paying for the show, the location, the décor, the company, the ass-kissing, the illusion that they're living a wonderful and exclusive experience (which may even be true inside their pea brains) and the priceless opportunity for half a dozen selfies.
Wankers (Score:2)
We have the best filtered, uv treated rain water at home. Puts trendy water to shame.
Water sommelier? (Score:1)
Wasn't being so decadent as having jobs as pointless as a water sommelier how so many empires fell through history?
Looking at history I'm getting a lot of vibes of what's happened in the 1930s. A few little skirmishes here and there. Disputes on trade and land. A few petty dictators looking for... what was it called? Living space? I'm pretty sure that was the term, though the phrasing varied some with each dictator. Then the little battles become bigger, more people join in because that looks like an
Re: (Score:2)
> I can only hope the next one won't be as deadly as the last.
if you're right, and sadly i suspect you are, your best option will be to die quickly in the first blast.
Homeopathic Water ... anyone? (Score:1)
I ship you the bottle ...you just add water to it.
It's reassuringly expensive to enhance your bragging rights.
Not just alcohol (Score:2)
In a lot of countries they are messing with traditional drinks, particularly using artificial sweeteners instead of sugar.
I've been to multiple restaurants lately where my choices are:
1) soft drinks polluted with artificial sweetener
2) alcohol
3) water
If i need to drive, or just don't want to consume alcohol then water becomes the only option.
Many people are intolerant of artificial sweeteners, suffering effects including migraines or diarrhea. Many more simply can't stand the taste. We used to have a choice
A complete non-starter (Score:2)
Water can be a high-end drink, obviously. I remember a meal at Georges Cinq in Paris that included a glass of super-cold water in a blue bottle that was served towards the end and was incredibly refreshing. But the poshest bottle the article discussed cost 19 quid. 19!! A not especially distinguished bottle of Savennieres will cost you 40 quid in the shops, and at least 100 in a restaurant. It’ll be considered good value too, much better than white burgundy for example. Restaurants are not going to be
You're quite right of course, but... (Score:5, Insightful)
Monetizing silly people never gets old.
Re: (Score:2)
I mean, they sell wine and hard liquor at dumb prices despite them only having a different label.
oh, its from 1973? Mkay... its been in the bottle since then, it doesnt ferment more.
Re: (Score:3)
> It would be much less carbon intensive to ship little bags of salts to mix with local tap water.
No, not tap water. Distilled water. Tap water would still have all the dissolved minerals and gasses to possibly make the experience different at each location. Better to start with a clean base and customize it from there.
Re: (Score:2)
You mean like sodastream does for CO2? Yeah if you have good tap water, buying bottles water is a waste of resources.