Standard prices for pints are $5 and up here. I usually get water, but sometimes I'll get a beer. With pizza, I like cherry pepsi. I just feel it pairs better. I almost never get more than 2 beers when I'm out, usually just 1 at a restaurant. That sh*t adds up real quick.
A friend of mine uses this excuse, "I hardly ever go out for beers and I don't buy much beer, so when I do go out, I don't mind paying a little extra." He also brews and does the majority of his drinking at his place or mine.