Be ready to pay more at restaurants as dining out could become costlier

With the customs hike on imported foodstuff and key ingredients in Budget 2018, dining out is set to get dearer

One of the things that might get dearer as a direct impact of the Union Budget 2018 is dining out. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hiked the customs duty on imported foodstuff and important ingredients to promote the Narendra Modi government's Make in India pitch. 

The Economic Times quoted disgruntled restauranteurs as saying that the hike will increase costs on the menu by up to 5 per cent as they won't be able to absorb the double whammy of customs hike and GST. They also said the quality of food is bound to suffer as a big portion of ingredients is