Restaurant Savings

 Restaurant Savings 

We have a mobile lifestyle which requires a lot of travel throughout the year.   We try to pack our meals, but sometimes our lifestyle requires us to eat out. Eating out for a family of 3 with a teenage boy usually means spending about $100 per meal.   

How can we decrease our out-of-pocket expenses?  

The first thing we do is to eliminate the beverage costs.   If we order water with or without lemon, there is no additional cost.    However, if we order any beverage the cost is between $3.50 and $10.00 per drink.    Yes, my son did order a $10.00 milkshake once.     

The second thing we do is check out their specials.   Typically, we receive this information via their loyalty program.   If we do go out without checking out the specials in advance, they are normally either listed on a board or the waitress/waiter shares them with us. We do not always go for the cheapest item on the menu, but we do look for value in our meals.   In addition, our local wings joint has a BOGO every Thursday and our Kroger has fresh-made sushi on sale every Wednesday.     We take this into account when we are unable to cook.   

Since restaurant portions are much larger than a person should eat in one setting, we divide the meal and take half of it home.    Alternatively, we will share one meal between the two of us.     At many restaurants, there is a plate fee associated with sharing a meal, but it is usually minimal.   

Finally, we skip dessert.    Desserts run from $7.00- $15.00 each, so this is a great way to keep the cost down.    However, when dessert is included in the price of the meal or we get it for free because of a special event such as your birthday, we go for it.    We only get one and we share it.   If no deal is to be had, we pick up a ½ gallon of ice cream on the way home and enjoy.   

Do you have any other tips or tricks to share when eating out?