Anyone else eat out everyday?
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tomcustombuilder wrote: »Damn, just prices now of eating out should be a deterrent
Not really. I get at least two and often three meals out of a restaurant entree. Sunday night I got a two meat meal, a green salad, and a couple of ribs from a local BBQ place. I’m finishing it tonight. All in it was about $45. Meat, vegetables, seasoning/recipe stuff, and some kind of starch at the store always seem to come out at $80 minimum for about the same number of meals. That’s even before I figure in the time spent cooking and cleaning that could be much more productively used.
$45 is not expensive? My main meals usually cost about 1.60 Euro or less. But yeah, I know prices differ by country.
I can't speak to BBQ, but one of the take out foods I get a lot is chicken pad Thai. This costs $12.40 and I get three meals out of it. (I do sauté some cabbage and bulk it up a bit to make it more filling for me.) I'm in Massachusetts, USA.0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »tomcustombuilder wrote: »Damn, just prices now of eating out should be a deterrent
Not really. I get at least two and often three meals out of a restaurant entree. Sunday night I got a two meat meal, a green salad, and a couple of ribs from a local BBQ place. I’m finishing it tonight. All in it was about $45. Meat, vegetables, seasoning/recipe stuff, and some kind of starch at the store always seem to come out at $80 minimum for about the same number of meals. That’s even before I figure in the time spent cooking and cleaning that could be much more productively used.
$45 is not expensive? My main meals usually cost about 1.60 Euro or less. But yeah, I know prices differ by country.
I can't speak to BBQ, but one of the take out foods I get a lot is chicken pad Thai. This costs $12.40 and I get three meals out of it. (I do sauté some cabbage and bulk it up a bit to make it more filling for me.) I'm in Massachusetts, USA.
BBQ is definitely a treat. But I'd been wanting it for a long time, so I just did it
. It's more typical to spend $20-$25 bucks at the Asian place around the corner to get an entree and a large soup that is easily 3 meals. The food is a little pricier than most strip mall Asian places, but they use really fresh vegetables and better cuts of meat than most of those places. 0 -
[/quote] BBQ is definitely a treat. But I'd been wanting it for a long time, so I just did it . It's more typical to spend $20-$25 bucks at the Asian place around the corner to get an entree and a large soup that is easily 3 meals. The food is a little pricier than most strip mall Asian places, but they use really fresh vegetables and better cuts of meat than most of those places.[/quote]
The problem is it’s nearly impossible to get an accurate calorie/nutrition count for something like that.
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BBQ is definitely a treat. But I'd been wanting it for a long time, so I just did itfastfoodietofitcutie wrote: » . It's more typical to spend $20-$25 bucks at the Asian place around the corner to get an entree and a large soup that is easily 3 meals. The food is a little pricier than most strip mall Asian places, but they use really fresh vegetables and better cuts of meat than most of those places.[/quote]
The problem is it’s nearly impossible to get an accurate calorie/nutrition count for something like that.
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It’s a trade off for sure. I was always fine with using an existing restaurant entry and estimating from there. I also eat pretty small portions, so even the worst guess calorically wasn’t too awful. But if you want a higher level of exactness, then home cooking is probably the way you need to go. There are a lot of ways to make it easier and quicker. Most of what I make at home probably takes less time than scrolling Door Dash trying to decide what sounds good. It just takes a lot more planning and shopping.0 -
@fastfoodietofitcutie hi!
I eat out a minimum of 3 times per week.. I order lunch to my office most days.
I incorporate whatever I order into my logging & calories limits.
For me - it’s convenient, I too spend a lot of money on dining out. I justify by considering that I’m saving time, clean up and I order items like poached salmon, steamed veggies, etc.
I find simpler fare easier to log as well. I frequent the same restaurants so asking re the ingredients, etc helps me log.
Its downtown Manhattan.. so yikes on how much money I am spending on groceries and restaurants. I enjoy though, so I guess it’s my vice. My office co workers are also big foodies always eating out so.. we tend to eat together or go out after work.. so.. I have to order lower calorie fare or it will add up.
Maybe choose a few days to eat home and some dedicated days to eat out?
For calorie considerations - if you work in an office, they make lil portable food scales.
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kshama2001 wrote: »The meals I make for myself are more filling for less calories than what I'd get out.
Like developing any habit, it takes practice and time, and if you want to start eating at home more, you can master it
I'd bet the meals you make yourself usually taste better too. Being able to tailor a dish to my/our preferences is part of the reason we don't eat out all that often. Even the left overs from home cooked dishes taste better the next day than food brought back from a restaurant in a clamshell or styrofoam box (hello landfill). When we eat out it is more for the social aspect and change of setting. The desire for something different to eat plays a part too.
The only way eating out saves any meaningful time or is more convenient is if you eat next door or pick up something from a fast food joint. To prepare whole food based meals at home there needs to be a compelling reason(s): cost, control of contents, taste, desire to experiment, knowledge of macros for logging, healthier option and so on. Keep to simple recipes to start with. Use cookware and appliances that are easy to clean. Make use of grocery deliveries if that works out best for you.
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kshama2001 wrote: »The meals I make for myself are more filling for less calories than what I'd get out.
Like developing any habit, it takes practice and time, and if you want to start eating at home more, you can master it
I'd bet the meals you make yourself usually taste better too. Being able to tailor a dish to my/our preferences is part of the reason we don't eat out all that often. Even the left overs from home cooked dishes taste better the next day than food brought back from a restaurant in a clamshell or styrofoam box (hello landfill). When we eat out it is more for the social aspect and change of setting. The desire for something different to eat plays a part too.
The only way eating out saves any meaningful time or is more convenient is if you eat next door or pick up something from a fast food joint. To prepare whole food based meals at home there needs to be a compelling reason(s): cost, control of contents, taste, desire to experiment, knowledge of macros for logging, healthier option and so on. Keep to simple recipes to start with. Use cookware and appliances that are easy to clean. Make use of grocery deliveries if that works out best for you.
I do like my cooking
I tend to just buy meals that I can't make, or don't want to make. I went through a whole home made pizza phase, and can certainly make a more than acceptable pizza, but don't want to take the time to make this (although using store pizza dough would speed things up,) so once or twice a month we pick one up.
And speaking of change of setting, a few times a summer we eat on the waterfront.1 -
i eat out about once a month. what if you made larger meals but separated them into portions (tupperware) — then you can just eat the same thing for a few days before moving on to something else?0
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I just love cooking too much, and I love finding recipes in my too many cookbooks that I can adjust to 30 minute weeknight cooking.
I generally don't eat out unless I'm on vacation, but I do order sushi every now and then. yeah, it's expensive here but lovely carbs! lovely fish! lovely avocado! 0 -
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I'm always on the road for work, and yes, I eat out (often "fast" food) virtually every day.
There are good choices at most places, just have to make them. (or pony up if you're an American and going to Chic Fil-A).0 -
i eat out about once a month. what if you made larger meals but separated them into portions (tupperware) — then you can just eat the same thing for a few days before moving on to something else?
When I cook at home, I think it's easiest to abandon the idea of "meals" entirely and focus on filling slots with whatever you have/sounds good. I try to get a protein, carb, veggies/fruits, and fat into every meal. Instead of worrying about what "goes" together, I just eat something in every category. I air fried some steak last night, so tonight I'll have that again. Dinner will most likely be tacos with steak and avocado and sliced carrots and dip. Or else some steak pieces and frozen roasted veggies. Checks the boxes. It's definitely not exciting, but it eliminates SOOO much brain drain for planning and preparing. And it can provide a little bit more variety than exactly the same thing for a few days in a row.1 -
My partner and I used to eat out more, but I've been cooking at home about 95% of the time here recently.
I do enjoy that I can cook yummy, filling meals for us that are more within my calorie count and also save money. About $175 for 2 weeks of meals for 2 adults (vs $40-$100+/meal for eating out).1 -
I'm always on the road for work, and yes, I eat out (often "fast" food) virtually every day.
There are good choices at most places, just have to make them. (or pony up if you're an American and going to Chic Fil-A).
Please enlighten me. I'd love to do fast food more often. I just can't think of any healthy fast food.
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I still eat out once or twice a week, but it can be very expensive. Sometimes, I could eat for more than a week at home for the cost of just one meal from a restaurant/cafe/takeaway place etc. Generally at home I eat legumes, vegetables, rice and homemade whole wheat bread and not a great deal of meat. Buying legumes in bulk, veggies in season and cooking larger batches of meals to add re-heatable portions to the freezer later helps keep the food costs down overall.0
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Yes, I am also single and used to eat out a lot. That is what got me into trouble with weight and high cholesterol. Also, for me personally, eating out alone usually leads to more alcohol consumption. There isn't much to do except drink a wine or beer while waiting for the food to come at a restaurant. I am sure it would be possible to eat out (at least some of the time) and eat healthier than I used to. But really, I find that cooking for myself works better for weight loss and health. For me, meal prepping has been key. I plan one night per week to cook one or two things for the week that I can put right into single-serving tupperware. (invest in some that are the right size.) That way it is easy to take to work or to pull out and microwave. Also, I find it helps to splurge a bit on organic food and/or the more expensive things that I really like. It still costs less than eating out.1
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The last couple of weeks it has been over 100 here every day. Way too hot to cook. One week I bought precooked shredded chicken. About $10 for a weeks worth. Avocado, tortillas, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, some fresh fruit, and some broccoli salad from the deli. A week of eating at home with no cooking. I wouldn't want to repeat it often, but if it stays this hot, I may do it once more. One week, precooked shrimp, sweet potato cooked in the crockpot, and a couple of bagged salads. A week I won't repeat, but it worked for a hot week.0
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