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How to make eating out as inexpensive as eating at home?

2K views 30 replies 26 participants last post by  phathui5 
#1 ·
We like to eat out a couple of times a month, maybe 3 times depending on what's going on.

We have a family of 6, two of then being teenagers and they eat adult portions.

Any tips on how to making dining out as inexpensive as eating at home, or at least close??
 
#3 ·
Generally eating breakfast out is cheaper than eating at dinner time. Also if you eat dinner out, skip the appetizers, soft drinks and desserts and just stick to entrees. I also tend to get appetizers as a meal, which also saves money.
 
#4 ·
Dh is all about eating out.
: So, I've had to find some ways to do it as cheaply as possible.

Don't eat dinner out. Do breakfast or lunch, instead. They're generally cheaper. And if you can eat during "lunch hour," most restaurants have some good specials.

Early in the week - usually Mondays through Wednesdays - lots of restaurants have a "kids eat free" day.

We get local mailers with restaurant coupons in them fairly regularly, and lots of restaurants put coupons in the local paper (and/or the local free entertainment paper that tells what bands are playing where, etc.). Many of them are for "buy an entree, get one free" (or buy two, get one free). Others are for a straight percentage off or for a free appetizer (which can be used as a meal, assuming it's not a giant pile of french fries or onion rings).

Don't buy drinks (unless you have to for a coupon to work).

Don't buy appetizers (except in place of a meal).

Share. Get a bunch of entrees (one less than the number of people eating them is good), put them all in the middle of the table, and have everybody share. If you have a decent-sized group, you can get away with buying one or two fewer entrees than you would have otherwise, and nobody feels slighted. Because portions in restaurants are so large, everyone still has enough food.

Or, have two people share an entree and cheap appetizer. This costs less than two entrees.

Try doing carry-out. There's no tipping the waiter (though, if there's a tip jar on the counter, a dollar or two would be called for), no tempting offers of desert, etc. If you're eating out to get away from the house for a bit, you can make it a picnic!

If your restaurant has an email club, sign up. For instance, one of our favorites, Fresh Choice, has a great email club. They'll let you know what's on the salad/soup bar, and they'll send you monthly coupons.

That's all I can think of for now. Hope this helps!
 
#5 ·
Buffets are good for us, the one Chinese buffet we go to charges the kids by their age, we have a 6 and 4 yr old so much cheaper than taking 2 teenagers out I'm sure.

Water to drink.

Going early, before the lunch menu is pulled.

Look at their sanswich menu, I'm thinking of one restaraunt we used to go to, they have a ribeye sandwich, the steak is a little smaller and thinner than if you would to order a steak but there is plenty, and you get the sides.

Look at their "for 2" type meals, (not splitting a meal, but actual double portions)

Coupons.
 
#6 ·
If you want to do appetizer/dessert we normally on order one entree. I just want second the tip to not have drinks.

Also... just a reminder... if we split an entree ect, we always tip as though we ordered two plates. The work for the waiter is just as much (or more!) than if we had ordered two separate plates.
 
#7 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by fek&fuzz View Post
What's your reason for eating out? For speed? Convenience? Ambiance? The joy of trying something new?
that might help with suggestions.
We like to eat out as a family a couple of times a month because we enjoy it. We budget it as part of our activities. Some people like golfing, some people like theatre, we like eating out. No special reason beyond that.


Thanks for the suggestions everyone, especially checking if the restaurant has a website and e-mail club or coupons! Why didn't I think of that??
 
#8 ·
ooh! and don't forget restaurant.com or discover cash backs... you can buy gift cards there ?for less than they are worth.

And I also get eating out as an entertainment. Our larger family doesn't often sit around a table to eat unless we are eating out...especially as kids get older.

Just something else to add... would you consider having a late lunch on "dinner out" nights? It might make it easier to share and split orders.
 
#11 ·
Restaurant portions are huge. I normally order an extra side item and split my meal with dd to save on costs, and even then I end up taking some home. Perhaps your older ones could do something similar with the younger ones? Just portion things out when the plate arrives so there's no squabbling. Oh, and water to drink.
 
#12 ·
We eat out frequently, too. It is an activity we all enjoy, and we get good quality time together. We always choose local restaurants, which have the added benefit of usually being cheaper than places like Applebees or Ruby Tuesday. Chinese, Mexican, and Italian restaurants tend to be the least expensive options in my town. We never order appetizers, unless we are at our favorite Italian restaurant, and then we order only one and share it. I used to love the delicious cheesecake at one restaurant, at $4.95/slice. Then I found the exact same cheesecake sold at our local wholesale grocer for $9.00/pie! That was the end of desert at the restaurant for me!
 
#13 ·
Some restaurants will have particular days when kids eat free. Our boys are both too old for this now, but when they were young we paid attention and ate out on those nights at whatever restaurant had kids eat free nights.
 
#14 ·
We have a local chinese restaurant that advertises several places w/ BOGO 3 item combo plates. It is $6 for 2 huge heaping trays of food. It's the only one that I've found that comes close to the same price as cooking at home.

For smaller children sometimes you can get away with taking them someplace like McDonald's to play and getting a yogurt fruit parfait for each of them. It's realitively healthy and inexpensive at $1 each for the "snack" size. It works well as a breakfast too.
 
#16 ·
I've worked as a server for 10 years now(wow thats
...whered that time go?)..heres some tips(some already stated..)

1) stay awayfrm ordering soft drinks ect...at around 2 bucks each theres atleast 12 bucks added to your bill!
2) kids eat free is good cost wise BUT remember that the meals on that are usually not that healthy! Im just saying!...
3) have the two l/os order an adult meal to share(like pasta)
4) if your meal comes with a starter salad or soup, have the server package it to go(without dressing on the salad) right away..eat it for lunchthe next day, you paid for it take it with you!
5) ethnic restaurants are great for variety and cost....dh and i go to a GREAT lil curry restaurant and for 25 dollars we get enough food to feed us and ds AND take enough home for atleast one meal
6) alot of restaurants appetizers are big enough for meals!..our nacho appetizer is enough for a grown lunch, enough for two kids to split with leftovers
7)skip dessert...WAY over priced!
8)the big one i find is that people try and gorge themselves at the restuarant, feel sick afterwards and dont want to pack up a little portion, so itgoes to waste...eat until you feel comfortable and take the rest with you.
9)people at dinner always order full meals w starter soup/salad and can never eat it all..stick with wraps/sandwiches..you'll prob save 2-4 dollars per entree
10) a big thing though..is if you are "sharing" portions, ect. be nice to your server, they'll have to actually work harder especially if you have specifics about sharing, like cheese on half a sandwich ect they'll also have to bring more plates, clear more plates,
 
#17 ·
Be careful if you are sharing entrees, a lot of restaurants now I have noticed charge a split plate fee - sometimes as much as a less expensive entree. So just be aware of this so you can plan accordingly.
 
#18 ·
We always order an appetizer to share, salad to share, two adult meals, a child meal for the older child. We eat the appetizer & salad. The child meal is split between the kids. The adult meals go home and get split between all 4 of us the next day at home. We especially like italian places where the rolls are free and they always give you extra to take home. I do not think it is as inexpensive as eating at home, but it makes it a little less expensive overall.
 
#19 ·
One of our favorite restaurants has great happy hour prices for the same food that is on their regular menu. Between 3 and 6 pm, and after 9 pm, as long as each adult in the party orders a drink (soft drinks and lemonade count) everyone at the table can order off the happy hour menu. So we end up paying $5 to $8 for drinks, but save at least $25 on the entire meal.

We also make sure to carefully read the menus. At another of our favorite restaurants we can feed the whole family on $10. For $10 we get a whole roast chicken, a large side of rice, a large side of beans, fresh pico de gallo and a bunch of corn tortillas. This deal is hidden in plain site at the bottom of the rotissery section of the menu. Nobody else seems to know about it but our family. Other customers constantly ask us about it when we're eating there.
 
#22 ·
i have to just echo the pp's about not ordering drinks. my dh and i have been ordering h2o with our meals for years now. it's not just about cost, we don't drink soda. okay, maybe the occasional hansen's or organic soda.
it saves us so much money, since we eat out more than i'd like to, but on the rare occasion we want an iced tea or even a $4 beer, it's no big deal. also, as a rule, we have never ordered desserts either. that saves big money. stop at the sore on your way home and pick up some yummy ice cream instead! even a carton of organic ice cream is cheaper than 1 dessert from a restaurant.
 
#23 ·
If you ENJOY eating out, and do it rarely, why not just do it slightly less often and not try to scrimp on an activity you enjoy? I'm not saying hit the Ruth's Chris every week, but instead of going to cheap places with mediocre food on a weekly or biweekly basis and ordering the cheapest thing on the menu with water, why not go to a nice locally owned restaurant and order something you enjoy and get the dessert, too?!
 
#24 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by llamalluv View Post
If you ENJOY eating out, and do it rarely, why not just do it slightly less often and not try to scrimp on an activity you enjoy? I'm not saying hit the Ruth's Chris every week, but instead of going to cheap places with mediocre food on a weekly or biweekly basis and ordering the cheapest thing on the menu with water, why not go to a nice locally owned restaurant and order something you enjoy and get the dessert, too?!
Good point, thanks!!
 
#25 ·
One of our favorites is a place with burritos large enough to serve 2 adults/teens. Since our son is small, it's actually enough to serve all three of us, even hungry. And it costs like $8. Pretty cheap. Since it is counter service, no waiters, we just stuff a dollar in the tip jar and call it a day. So look for places with large portions and cheap entrees. We also like 2 of the local taco truck type places...super cheap and tasty. Way better than chain fast food but every bit as fast.

Another thing is getting on the b-day and anniversary lists. Several locally owned places here send out buy one get one dinner coupons for b-days and anniversaries if you give them your email.

I also agree with the idea of splurging less often to scrimping often.
 
#26 ·
well we try to go out for breakfast as it's cheapest. also sign up for bdays so we go when it's free. there's also a new pizza place that gives you great rewards for eating there. so we always get something free, slice of pizza, a drink or salad. usually can feed dd and i for $5.00! and when i dont feel like cooking we go to Taco Bell. Again $5 for both, it's not healthiest but it's quick and a nice break.
 
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