Does Barclays Have the Most Expensive Beer of All NYC Sports Venues?

Stepping into the Barclays Center for the first time for last night’s Leonard Cohen show, it was hard not to want to walk around and look at every last thing in the new arena. The [empty, no surprise] Nets shop! The [closed, sadly] L&B Spumoni Gardens outpost! And hey, isn’t that Paul Dano?

But the one thing that was most noticeable was the price of beer:

• At a cart, a 12oz can of Brooklyn Lager or a 16oz bottle of Bud or Bud Lite was $10.

• At a cart with a tap, a 16oz cup Brooklyn Lager was $10, or a 20oz cup of Bud or Bud Lite was $10.50.

• At food vendors, it was $10 for a 16oz cup of imported beer (usually Stella Artois, which, like Bud, is owned by Anheuser-Busch, which is a sponsor of the arena), or $10.50 for a 20oz cup of domestic.

So we had a couple of questions. Do the prices increase at an event like a concert? Because beer was cheaper at a preview of the arena, but that $10 price was mentioned at the Jay-Z show. If not, then how does the price of beer stack up against other sports venues in New York City?

Here’s what we’ve found:

• At Citi Field this past season, a variety of 12oz bottled beers were $8.50 at Big Apple Brews.

• During the Rangers’ last season (remember hockey?) at MSG, a 22oz Bud was $9.50, and a 22oz Heineken was $10.

• A 24oz Heineken for $12.50 at Yankee Stadium might seem crazy, but that’s still cheaper per ounce than the 16oz Brooklyn at Barclays.

Looks like Barclays is the most expensive, but if you’ve noticed similar prices at any of those other venues, let us know.

So is $10 for a pint of Brooklyn or Stella a lot to ask, or is that just expected from a new venue?