How much does New Year’s Day cost?

ERB decided to calculate how much an average New Year’s Day would cost to a Belarusian family. We took a family of four – mother, father and two children. Here is their average New Year’s menu; it is neither poor nor wasteful. The year of the Rat is coming soon, so there should always be dishes made of cheese or simply cheese on the table.  The difference in prices is rather big.

“We have various cheeses and the prices differ. They start at 8 thousands and reach 55 thousands. There are imported, blue and hard cheeses…”

Let’s take 600 grams of an average cheese for 15 thousands per kilo. It will make about 9900.

However, meat is the main dish. Grilled chicken or goose, veal, pork or mutton. A small family will need about 1.5 or 2 kilos of meat. Let’s take the average price of several kilos of meat – 32 thousand BRB.

Prepare two “standard” salads – “Olivier” and “Salad with crab sticks”. It adds about 25 thousand rubles. Let us also cook “Herring under a mayonnaise and beet dressing” – about 6 thousands.

There should always be fruit served at a festive table. You will need tangerines, apples and bananas. If you buy a kilo of each you will spend 12 thousand rubles.

A New Year’s cake costs about 12 thousands in Minsk if you are going to buy it.

“Chocolate ice-cream” – 11 thousands, “Caramel” – 12 300, “Hamyalchanka” – a bit more than 11 and “Birdie” is about the same price too. There is also “Harmony” – its costs 13 thousands. There is “Bravela” – it is a flaky cake just like “Napoleon”, it costs 5700. And you should also pay for the packing.

Let’s add some cadies and tea-biscuits and the tea itself – 25 thousands.

Alcoholic beverages. There is no New Year’s Night without champagne. Two bottles will cost about 17 thousand rubles. Add a bottle of wine and a bottle of vodka – 23500.

Two packs of juice for children will cost 7 thousands.

But we forgot about the main symbol of the New Year – the New Year’s Tree. If you have an artificial tree to set up every year you do not have to worry. But if you like the smell of coniferous forest you will have to spend up on it too.

“The prices of the Ministry of Forestry: a fir-tree shorter than 1 metre costs 9200, from 1 to 2 metres – 13700 and from 2 to 3  - 16100 BRB”.

Children will also want Father Frost and Snow Maiden to congratulate them. Their performance will cost about 60-70 thousand rubles. If you are eager to play their parts yourselves it will not be cheaper – renting their costumes will cost 80 thousands per day.

So you will spend about 255 thousands on the whole. The sum does not include presents for relatives, festive attires and decorations for the flat and the fir-tree.