How many $$$ to be expensive - Restaurant?

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  • jessilyn76
    jessilyn76 Posts: 532 Member
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    My husband and I have newborn twins and a three year old. We rarely go out, or even have time to ourselves. We work hard and make a decent living. When we go out for dinner, price is not a factor! We don't do it all the time and it's worth it!! We recently went out with another couple for my birthday, with appetizers, 2 bottles of wine and entrees, the bill was $254 before the tip. We had a great time, it was worth every penny, and hope to do it again before next year!!!!
  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
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    "Expensive" is relative to the type of experience I am having. Sometimes, the ambiance, the company I keep and the quality of the food is worth the extra dollars.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    Dinner for two:

    > $10 PP: pretty cheap; getting off easy

    $10-$20 PP: average respectable restaurant; not cheap, not expensive

    $20-$30 PP: mid-range establishment...steak house type of place...perhaps some alcohol involved...somewhat of an occasion

    $30-$50 PP: mid/upper range...not quite fine dining, but could be close...definitely an occasion

    $50-$100 PP: High End establishment...may or may not be fine dining, but definitely upper echelon establishment with very high quality foods/ingredients; special occasion.

    $100+ PP: High End fine dining...usually too snooty for me and involves wearing a tie and jacket. Pretty much just showing off now, quality not much different than a mid/upper to high end establishment.
  • Sweet_Potato
    Sweet_Potato Posts: 1,119 Member
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    I recently paid $238 for two people with a couple glasses of wine, but that's not that outrageous where I live.
  • coolraul07
    coolraul07 Posts: 1,606 Member
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    I'm a cheap date and rarely drink alcohol. My philosophy is scrimp in some areas so that you can splurge in other areas. To each his own, but I feel that a meal is too fleeting an experience to spend a lot of money on. I eat the food and 12-48 hours later I see it again in a non-appetizing form... big whoop! #TMI :sick: :noway:
    Eating solo, I'm fine with a $7 fast food meal or a $20 casual fare meal (think buffet, Chili's, Applebee's, etc.) I have spent up to $60 (including tip) for a solo meal at a 'fancy tie' restaurant:yawn: , but in hindsight, I'd've been just as happy at a casual fare place.
    When treating a group, it's usually in the teen$/person; my teeth start to clench once the bill exceeds the $20-30/person range, including tip. If there's an entertainment component (e.g. Japanese Hibachi/Teppanyaki, etc.), then up to $40/person is acceptable.

    I'd rather spend my money on something that lasts for more than the moment, like gadgets, home/car repairs, etc. Something I can go back to and say, "Yup, that's where my money went this month!" Even though vacations are fleeting, the pictures and video taken and the experiences themselves make them worth the money spent!
  • motown13
    motown13 Posts: 688 Member
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    atmosphere

    Word.

    A lot of people forget that is part of the cost.

    Not to me. It may be part of it, but I don't notice it or care about it.
  • MizSaz
    MizSaz Posts: 445 Member
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    We don't eat out much, and I am a self-proclaimed food and wine snob. My boyfriend knows that if the two of us go out for a nice dinner, if we get out of it for under $150, we've done well. Food, drink, and atmosphere is what I'm paying for, not just some half *kitten* plate to get slapped in front of me. It's the experience that makes it worth it.
  • sixout
    sixout Posts: 3,128 Member
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    atmosphere

    Word.

    A lot of people forget that is part of the cost.

    Not to me. It may be part of it, but I don't notice it or care about it.

    Then don't pay for it. For others it does matter. So they pay for it.
  • twanthe1
    twanthe1 Posts: 407
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    Per person

    0-10 Cheap, 10-25 Moderate, 25-55 Expensive, 55+ Pretentious
  • UpEarly
    UpEarly Posts: 2,555 Member
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    We don't go out to eat often, but I don't mind paying about $100/person for a good meal that include a glass or two of wine and dessert.

    If I spend that much, I expect it to include the work of a creative chef and impeccably sourced ingredients. I'd rather have one good meal like that than five or six meals at a place like Chili's or Outback. :smile:
  • bmqbonnie
    bmqbonnie Posts: 836 Member
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    There is a really nice restaurant here called Cattails. It's a little bit out of the way, surrounded by woods, has a beautiful deck, and inside there's white tableclothes. The food is great and it's not that expensive, probably around $35/person including tip and drinks.

    Then a place called Sparkling Waters is considered to be "the best" and fanciest place in town. It's not that good, it's just $50 and up per person. Other than being close to the lake it's in kind of an ugly part of town too, and the service can be subpar especially if you go on Valentine's day or whatever.

    Meh. There comes a point where you're spending for the sake of spending. Cattails genuinely is BETTER, and cheaper to boot. I find this is the case in most towns I've lived in. The hoity toity place is often not as good as a couple lesser known holes in the wall.
  • ldrosophila
    ldrosophila Posts: 7,512 Member
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    Best meal of my life two people $350 including two bottle of wine...yum!
  • slkehl
    slkehl Posts: 3,801 Member
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    My technique: go to a fancy restaurant with a bar in the wee hours of the morning when everyone is smashed. One of the rich people will come over, start a conversation, and end up paying for your meal. Of course, it helps to have hot friends.
  • CarlieeBear
    CarlieeBear Posts: 325 Member
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    There's a difference between expensive and too expensive. For me, too expensive is any meal where I feel I could have fed multiple poor, hungry people instead of just myself or me and one other person.
  • Cp731
    Cp731 Posts: 3,195 Member
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    NO way I love a great meal, money is no object when theres great ombiance, great service and hot yummy food. The most I ever meant was $400 bucks for two people, but we ate and drank for hours and wernt rushed out the door.
  • RaeLB
    RaeLB Posts: 1,216 Member
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    she pushed you out of her vagina, let her have her $22 salads
  • helplesslyhappy
    helplesslyhappy Posts: 43
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    If you are talking about middle of the road, average mom and pop anything over 12$ is ridiculous.

    If you are talking about wine and dine event, a aromantic occasion? 40-60 depending on your location.

    If you use dollar bills to wipe your *kitten* then you can spend 200$+ for a meal for two and not bat an eye...

    I think that you should do a bbq at home next time, if the expenses are stressing you out so much
  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
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    NO way I love a great meal, money is no object when theres great ombiance, great service and hot yummy food. The most I ever meant was $400 bucks for two people, but we ate and drank for hours and wernt rushed out the door.

    You just made me panic, hahahaha.
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
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    At what dollar amount do you say a restaurant becomes "expensive"? ( including tip )

    I admit, I hate paying a lot to eat in a restaurant.... Just like I hate paying a lot for hotel rooms.... If I could, I wouldn't spend more than $15 - $20 for myself on dinner, including tip. I don't drink so I do save money there.

    Anyway, to answer my own question, I start saying to myself that a restaurant is expensive if I have to pay $30 p.p. including the tip, but like I said, I am a tightwad when it comes to paying for food. The absolute most I can ever remember paying for a meal was $55, including tip, while in Vegas on vacation. And because I am so cheap, LOL, it bothered me all night.

    BTW, I had to pay $370 last weekend for a dinner for 10 people, including tip, and all I kept thinking was "These people better eat all their food and not waste it." And then my mom took ONE BITE from her dinner, and proclaimed herself full. She absolutely KNOWS that she doesn't eat more than a few bites at a meal, so she probably should not have ordered a meal... sh had already eaten an app and a salad, which is more than she can usually eat...... I felt like she wasted $22 of my money.

    word to the wise. do not. pm me OP. just sayin' :drinker: not only do I drink, it's not even only one glass. we are in agreement around here that it is totally worth it to spend the same price we would have paid for a whole bottle at home of the stuff to get said wine by the glass at the table with the delicious food it goes with. we stopped caring about "oh we could have had a whole bottle for that price". yeah. at home. without the nice meal to complement it. boring. it's the experience you pay for not just food pound for pound. or else you could just eat the food right out of the weighing thing at the supermarket. promise me just once you will walk into a restaurant with 200 bucks and let the staff show you how it's done. just once. bucket list it if you must.

    ETA: chasin! i cannot beleive you were up there the whole time with roughly the same per person figures? kismet.
  • Dulcemami4ever
    Dulcemami4ever Posts: 344 Member
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    she pushed you out of her vagina, let her have her $22 salads

    rofl

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