With prices all around us rising, now is the time to find creative ways to reduce some bills. Even if you like to cook, it is nice to be able to go to a restaurant, order food, eat, not have to clean the dishes, and try out some new food. But there are trade-offs. Meals in restaurants tend to have larger portions and are higher calorie meals than what we would normally cook at home, and eating out is almost always more expensive than preparing your own meals at home. Some of these ideas are very simple, but if you eat out a bunch, they could save you a lot of money in the long run.
- Skip the appetizers
Appetizers usually run in the $5-$12 range, so depending on which appetizer you get and how many, appetizers can be a big portion of your bill. It is okay to splurge once in a while, but getting appetizers (and all the extra calories that come along with them) is something you don’t need every time you eat out. - Drink water
Do you get a soda, tea, or alcoholic beverage every time you go out to eat? At $2-$3 (or more) for a tea or soft drink and at least $5 in most places for a beer or glass of wine, what if you skipped the beverage every other time you went out to eat? - Desserts
Aside from being calorie bombs on top of what might be a high calorie meal of appetizers, soft drinks or alcohol, and an entree, you could probably (maybe should) pass on getting that dessert after a big meal out. On top of saving you a bunch of empty calories, this will probably save you $5 or more every time you decide to pass, although this can become an nice treat every few times you go out to eat.
- Will it be memorable?
I’m sure you’re scratching your head and thinking: “What is he talking about?” If you eat out a lot, do you remember all the times you went to fancy restaurants or expensive dinners (without looking at pictures you took of your food)? I know I don’t usually remember the meals I eat at restaurants. If I remember a specific dinner out, its usually because the people I was with helped create a memory of the event, not the food. I rarely, if ever, remember the exact meal I ate. My most memorable meals usually involve eating big meals during family gatherings, whether it’s when my mom makes a table full of homemade Chinese food or when my mother-in-law makes venison backstrap that our 4-year-old son devours for Christmas dinner. So, for me, I usually stick with the middle and lower price entrées, which are usually $10-$15 per entrée. Occasionally, I may splurge on a more expensive entrée, but even then, I rarely remember what I ordered. - Rewards Programs
Our kids have two favorite restaurants in the United States: Red Robin and Chick-fil-A. So I use rewards programs at each of those restaurants. Red Robin offers a free ‘gourmet’ burger level meal after you buy nine regular meals with them. And Chick-fil-A has a points system to earn towards menu items. Back in the pre-pandemic and pre-kindergarten days, I used to eat lunch out every Monday with my daughter after her gymnastics class at one of those two restaurants. I don’t use any other restaurant rewards, since keeping track of more would probably not be worth the effort for me. - Discounts
Military, Senior, First Responder, and other discounts are all over the place at restaurants. You just have to ask. Even though the discount isn’t advertised, they may still have one. Occasionally, we will use coupons or online discounts that come in the mail. During the pandemic, Red Robin had $2.99 kids’ meals on Wednesdays, so we shifted our takeout dinner night from Friday to Wednesday. CAVEAT: You should be tipping based off the bill before you receive the discount.
So how much do you spend eating out every month? And how much could you save if you made some of these small changes when eating out? If you and your significant other eat out once a week, that’s four times per month on average. Even if you only make use these recommendations half of the time you eat out, you’ll likely save $50 or more per month ($600 per year), assuming $4 each for alcoholic beverages, $8 for an appetizer, and $4 less on each entrée. This would come to $48 per month before taxes and tip. If you usually get two appetizers or more than one drink or one of the most expensive entrees on the menu, you could easily be looking at near $100 per month in savings. Do you think it’s worth a try?
What else do you do to save when dining out?
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