Eating out

It is just me and DH, and we know that eating out is a very large expense for us each month, but it works for us. DH works long hours, and also has an extensive workout schedule, and we both travel for work, so I would much rather spend the time we do get together focusing on him than cooking a meal and cleaning. Don't get me wrong it can be a lot of fun to cook/clean together on occasion, but isn't something I prefer to do for every meal we eat together. DH is fed at work during the week, and I cook for myself via meal kit delivery, but we eat out at least 3, maybe up to 5 times in a weekend, and sometimes we meet up on Wednesdays at a restaurant to spend time together.

We don't eat fast food regularly at all, only really if we are traveling and need to eat quickly, so that's not an issue. We usually go to at least one ethnic restaurant (Indian, Malaysian, Thai, Korean, Spanish Tapas, Mexican, etc.) then maybe one of the local cocktail places for drinks and split a fancy pizza and burger, we might go to one of the many downtown areas and walk around until we find something that looks interesting, we have a couple of regional chain sit-down restaurants that we will usually go to if we have to be out shopping or already in those areas. We have a cheese bar that we like to frequent for cheese and charcuterie and a wine flight or craft beer. Depending on where we go we can be in and out of a place in 45 minutes (including drive) or we can linger for a couple hours over cocktails and small plates, depending on what we have going on. We also split meals a lot, or share apps, small plates or entrees, so that really isn't an issue either. I have a soft spot for a couple local pizzerias, so we will grab a pie once or twice a month and eat while catching up on our shows.
 
I was interested in that thread too and was wondering similar things. My family of five orders take out every Friday and goes out to eat every other Saturday or so and it's always expensive and I always feel the scale goes up a pound from all of the salt. It's a calorie and money splurge for us. I can't imagine the extra weight I'd gain from eating out so much. I understand choosing healthy choices if you go out to eat often and if that works for you, definitely a bonus. I like to order things I might not make at home, which tend to be higher in calories. With two full time jobs, my husband's hour commute from work, three kids in sports and activities, prepping dinner ahead of time and having a plan is a must for me. As long as we do that--even if we are eating a really early or late dinner--it cuts back on expense and time. It's interesting to read about how other people make it work, and the reasons behind what they do. It cleared up a lot of my questions! :)
 
Yes. We do Chipotle once a week. It's about $45 because my dh hates it -- just my two girls and me. Those nights I make dh a simple grilled chicken meal.

I love Chipotle- if I get a burrito I eat half for dinner and will have the other half for breakfast cold.

We've lived in Atlanta for over 3 years now, and have taken the kids to Chik Fil A twice. I don't get the hype.

I agree- I tried them twice while on vacation places and it was just "meh"- nothing great. I think Popeyes is tastier than Chik Fil A.
 


To be honest, the I think the "hype" of Chik Fil A is the customer service. Where I live, hands down out of *any* fast food place, those employees are the nicest. The restaurants are always clean, supplies always filled, managers always asking if you'd like a refill, etc. I think people, gasp, really enjoy the treatment they give their customers. My son worked there for a year and they customer service is their top priority. Within reason, they will do anything you ask and fix anything with a smile.

I agree that the chicken is nothing special overall, although I like it better than most other chicken sandwiches at fast food. Popeye's is fabulous though but, where I am, surly employees and kind of suspect on the cleaning.
 
You don't have chick fil? We would die..

We are finally getting one in MN this week. I am not a fan of chicken typically, so it is not on my radar...but my kids want to try it..

Wow, kudos to you on being super organized. We are always on the go. I have an nine yr old, a sixteen years old, a two yr old and a seven month old. I feel like all I do is cook, wash dishes, and laundry. I try to cook at home as much as possible. We tend to eat put when evenings are hectic. I'm vice president of my son's PTA( yes I'm that mom) plus my teenage daughter raises a pig at her school. Between feeding the pig, cleaning the pen, and walking it, then PTA meeting/fundraisers/events, sometimes evenings can get pretty hectic. We usually eat Bill Miller's those nights. I'm a huge fan of their sweet tea (which tends to add pounds if not careful), plus the kids love the chicken strips there.

I have extreme anxiety if things are not organized. Being over the top about meal planning and house cleaning keeps me a bit saner with the life we lead. PTA isn't a thing at my kids school, thankfully, so no duties there. But we have the many, many sports my kids are in, my job which can keep me at my desk for 15 hours a day, husband coaches baseball and bowling, youth group, life, etc. Everyone is busy with something, I figure - this is my way to keep my anxiety a bit in check.
 
DH and I eat out about twice a month, maybe three times. Cost isn't a factor. I enjoy cooking and just prefer to eat at home.

No matter how busy I am or was when DDs were still living here, I always make dinner time at home a priority.

As for chicken fast food restaurants, I like those Zaxby's they have in the south.
 


I am one that was guilty of eating out too much. Honestly it tends to be just me every day at lunch (about $10 a day) and if for supper, its usually either just me and dh or just me and dd (if I go down to visit with her during the week). Sometimes on the weekend it will be me and dh and one of the kids or a combination of the kids. So fast food may cost us $10 up to $30 each time. Usually $10-15. And that can be for anywhere from 1 night a wekk to 6 nights in a week, just depends on what is going on. So add the lunches to the night time meals and it adds up QUICK.

Our problem is needing leaving the house before supper time and not getting back until way late. So its either grab something out or starve until we get back. But that is slowing down so luckily we will be able to eat at home more or at least that is the plan.
 
Dh and I went out for Chinese food for lunch today. Their lunch special included soup. We had leftovers we will have for lunch tomorrow. Total cost under $20 including tip.
 
Let me tell you, Southerners take their fried chicken VERY seriously! I'd heard that, but didn't really know what it meant until we moved to North Carolina. I haven't touched the Colonel's chicken since we moved here. Similarly, I'm too intimidated to actually try making fried chicken, because it's so darn good when you buy it. We love them all--Hardee's, Zaxby's, Chick-Fil-A (hey--almost time for their peppermint shakes again--yay!). One of our favorite activities is to go to the beach, then swing by Smithfield's for fried chicken, hushpuppies, and coleslaw on the way home. The only one I don't care for is Bojangle's--their chicken and fries are so salty, I can't eat them. My kids like them fine, but we never go there.

See, I can understand how a single person or couple, working long hours, could find a quick meal to be a reasonable purchase. Say you spend $10 on a burrito or salad. I know I can't finish a Chipotle burrito in one sitting, so I have the leftovers for breakfast. Plus, there's no prep, no waste, you get exactly what you want, when you want it, freshly prepared. I can't justify it for my large family, but it's a good option for people who don't want to come home after a long work day and play "kitchen magician". I also think that grocery stores offer many more grab-and-go choices than they used to--choices that are fresh, healthy, and varied. It sure beats staring at a stack of Lean Cuisines in your freezer.
 
We used to eat out at restaurants a lot when the kids were small and ate kids meals. Now they are teens/preteens. So now eating "out" is take out and we don't do it as often as we used to. We usually Pizza and wings, chic fil a, local bodega food, Mexican, Dominican food, etc. I can usually walk away spending 30ish bucks for dinner.

I'm a good cook but it's such a pain in the butt. No matter what I make someone is disappointed. I work full time and the kids have something going on after school so I'm squeezing in time to cook. It's not enjoyable to me.

Once my kids move out or buy their own meals I plan on never cooking again. I plan on eating out most meals. Do quick breakfasts, buy bagged salads and grill my own chicken for lunches, prep stir fry for lunches. Things like that. But sit and cook meals for dinner after working all day.....no.

My coworker and her husband do happy hour often now that their last son is in college. Two apps and a drink each is about $30. They used to spend over $250 a week in groceries so they save money now even with doing this.
 
Oh, yes, huge portions at Chipotle. If I'm not a glutton, I can make two meals out of a burrito or burrito bowl. It's a lot of food.
I have said that once or twice, but my bowl is always empty :-) and I could eat it every day and never get tired of it.

I have survived 50 years without Chick Fil!. I don't think there are any in Canada. Are there any in North Dakota? Never noticed them there or Minnesota on our travels.
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There are several in MN (I won't eat there, due to reasons mentioned by someone else earlier I believe, but we have them), they are also putting one in Fargo.

Yes. We do Chipotle once a week. It's about $45 because my dh hates it -- just my two girls and me. Those nights I make dh a simple grilled chicken meal.

$45 for 3 of you? We go for the 4 of us and it's just under $40 for 4 adults.
 
DH and I eat out once or twice a week generally, sometimes less, sometimes more. We prefer local sit-down restaurants, think diner type, for casual dinners. Occasionally go somewhere nicer, and occasionally opt for fast food but not very often. We didn't go out as often when the kids were still at home.
 
I guess we're weird. When we're home (not on vacation) we eat out about 5 or 6 times a YEAR. Each person gets to pick a restaurant that we go to for their birthday, so that's 4 times a year. And then maybe 1 or 2 other times and that's it. When we're on vacation, we're the people who bring our own picnic lunches too. And even so, after 4 or 5 days of restaurants we are sooooo sick of restaurant food and can't wait to get back home.

It started when we had kids and I wanted to stay home, we decided that it would be a good place to save money. 14 years later it's just become sooo much a habit it doesn't even cross our minds to eat out. Even when we're busy chasing kids around we have our quick "cheat" meals that we'll do. Money wise, we could afford to eat out more now, but I still do get a little shocked when I see the tab for a regular dinner for the 4 of us. It is really hard to not compare that amount to what I could buy for that in groceries. I'm trying to get past that though.
 
I'm a perimeter shopper now meaning I cook from scratch pretty much everything we eat at home but there was a period of time in our lives when we ordered takeout most every night. We were newly minted empty nesters with a lot of career upheaval going on and it made sense for a month or two in our lives. Certainly was expensive though.
 
Back in the day when our boys were home eating out meant ordering pizza. The only time we really ate out was on vacation.
 
Back in the day when our boys were home eating out meant ordering pizza. The only time we really ate out was on vacation.

My kids were joking with me the other day about ordering pizza. Realized that never once in their lives have we had pizza delivered to the house. We've picked it up a time or two, but never delivery. Told them I was sorry to deprive them of the experience, and they said it was fine cuz they're friends all have it delivered to the house. Lol
 

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