How often do you eat out?

[jennyb]

We (hubby and me) usually eat out about once or twice a month. We are not very adventurous and go to a local Pizza Express or a local Italian. Sometimes we do lunch in a country pub nearby. When we go on holiday we eat out a lot, of course, but otherwise not much. I was wondering if others here go out to eat very often apart from when on holiday.

 

[Yorky]

That's a coincidence. We are going to "eat out" today for the first time in a month but I'll probably just bring home a carry out. Although my wife eats out about 5 times/week.

 

[Slumgullioneer]

Three or four times a month these days.
However where we go is a factor as well....limited buget, so generally speaking the cheaper the place the more times we go in any given period. With us its usually medium range restaurants like Italian, Mexican Asian, medium end American, etc.
Also can depend on the weather and how much I feel like cooking. :-/

 

[Morning Glory]

Although my wife eats out about 5 times/week.

?

 

[Morning Glory]

However where we go is a factor as well....limited buget

I know what you mean! I have got to a point where I resent paying for food that I can cook better for a third of the price. But sometimes its good to chow out and chill out!

 

[Yorky]

?

For what she eats it's much cheaper to eat out. Only the restaurant 100 metres down the road usually - 50 - 60 pence for a plate of food. I don't go because it's not licenced.

 

[Frizz1974]

As a family of four we don't eat out very much at all.

Locally there are no options available that don't make us resent the cost - between $80-120.

We almost always end up saying that I could have cooked it the same, if not better at home for less than 25% of the cost - sometimes I could have produced it for less than 10%. It saves on doing the dishes and sometimes it's quite relaxing of course.

We will be eating at the local Thai place this month for my nieces birthday - the food is good and quite reasonably priced, but nothing I can't replicate.

Of course there is one more reason to eat out - sometimes you discover a new dish. My son discovered he loves a Panang curry with pork, my daughter & I had a beautiful rocket salad with avocado and a lemon pesto dressing that we have re-produced time & again at home since we first ate it in a local wood fired pizza restaurant.

I have a bunch of foodie friends I met on the Taste.com.au forums (now long gone) and we gather to eat lunches together a few times a year in various cities across Australia and usually choose a banquet menu so we can relax and eat for hours while having a few bubbles or reds.

We don't usually go super up market however we do have a booking at Red Lantern (Sydney) this month which we are all pretty excited about.

 

[Yorky]

We're going here today:

 

[Lynne Guinne]

...I have got to a point where I resent paying for food that I can cook better for a third of the price. But sometimes its good to chow out and chill out!

^This!^

We have two places near home that we like. The Irish Pub is about 18 miles away, and is for either special occasions or a quick bite of a shared Irish Potato Pizza (potato skins on a cast iron round griddle, topped with cheeses and other yummies, and baked until the skins and cheese are brown) and an Imperial pint each. The other is your standard local bar-and-grill, which we resort to when we want a nice, charred burger in the dead of winter. Otherwise, we pretty much restrict restaurant dining to vacations. Like now. At least by staying with our daughter I'm able to putter in the kitchen more often than not. Restaurant stops are for get-togethers with friends we don't see very often. We'll be doing a big meet-up with another couple, plus a few husband-free friends, tomorrow. Can't wait!

 

[Morning Glory]

We're going here today:

View attachment 10230

This looks fab. I love the sign.

 

[Yorky]

We both had this:

Stir fried chicken and bamboo shoots with holy basil and a little rice. Thirty bob each.

However, I was somewhat fishcaked after leaving the restaurant.

Still am.

 

[toddhicks209]

We eat out about every 8 to 10 months on average.

 

[Morning Glory]

We eat out about every 8 to 10 months on average.

That's not very often. Were do you eat on that visit?

 

[Slumgullioneer]

I love the hand made Tarzan furniture in that photo.
And the ambience in general.

 

[The Late Night Gourmet]

When I was young, we ate out maybe once a month, and occasionally that was at a decent restaurant. As I became an adult with my own income (and my own choices), I found myself getting a carry-out (take-away) every once in a while, and sometimes eating out.

Then, I met my wife. We now eat out twice a week: once with the immediate family, and once with the extended family (up to 9 people, depending on who's available). My immediate family usually eat at sensibly priced places; the family favorite by far is Texas Roadhouse, where I can get a flawless 6 ounce sirloin and 2 sides (usually a Caesar salad and a potato) for less than $10.

When we eat out with the extended family, her dad usually picks the place (you'd think it should be a democracy...), and it's always a low quality diner of some kind. Even though it's only a few dollars cheaper, there's a huge quality difference between a perfectly prepared steak (Texas Roadhouse) and the (usually) overcooked and under-seasoned things at these diners.