How much do you spend on food a week?

Soldato
Joined
30 May 2008
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7,788
I would highly recommend those of you who don't, shop at ALDI.

You can get a great weeks shop for £30 (7 days) for one person. That includes rump steak, chicken, salmon, veg and fruit.
 
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Associate
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Location
Wiltshire
About £40-50 for two adults. We eat quite well with lots of meat and fresh vegetables, and I'll usually buy a larger joint of meat to BBQ at the weekend.
 
Associate
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Gold Coast.
I spend $150aud (£80) a week easily. Eye Fillet steak, Fresh salmon, eggs, egg white, chicken, milk, Bread, heaps of fruit, salad and veges. I eat very well.
 
Soldato
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14,700
Would you mind giving a rough breakdown of the meals you make with that? I'm not trying to be a ****, it'd be genuinely helpful to get an idea for cheap meals.

Me and the missus average £60 a week. That's breakfast lunch and dinner 7 days. I suspect a lot of people with the lower spends either don't eat certain meals or get takeaways/eat out which they're not including in the spend.

We eat three meals a day plus a juice and no takeaways.

This is what we're having for the week (two people):

Breakfast
Overnight oats with a banana, frozen berries and milk

Green juice (as a snack)
  • Spinach
  • Kale
  • Carrots
  • Cucumber
  • Apple
  • Ginger
  • Lemon
  • Celery

Lunch
Batch-cooked home made soups:
Beetroot, Apple & horseradish
Butternut squash
Potato and leek

Dinner

Monday - vegetable stir-fry
Tuesday - peppers stuffed with tuna, sweet corn & buckwheat
Wednesday - Red-lentil Dahl with potatoes
Thursday - mixed vegetable rice with chorizo
Friday - Thai green fish curry with rice

Weekend
Two home-made pizzas: chorizo & onion, and olive & anchovies
Home-made meatballs with pasta & home-made garlic toast

Like I said, the £22 today is just for the week-day stuff. Once you've added the chorizo, mince and bits for the weekend you're looking at about £30.
 
Soldato
Joined
13 Sep 2008
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5,450
Around £15 a week for 2 adults (including sirloin steak and a bottles of wine plus lots of ethically sourced trendy foods whose names I can't spell). Shop smart people.. It's easy.

Back in reality land - around £100 for two adults. Could save a LOT if I didn't drink so much coffee at work and made my own lunch but hey ho...
 
Soldato
Joined
29 Mar 2011
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4,908
Seems like lots of people in here massively under estimate what they spend.

Actually no, without basics bread, milk, sugar and tea/coffee of course.

Our food bill is very low as we buy what we need or want, we don't go out and spend £100 of, I think I fancy that food.

Waste of money, buy what you need on a daily basis.

Cat food on the other hand!!!!!!!!!!!:mad:
 
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The Orion Spur
35-40 quid for two people including wine and ale as well as using local butchers and grocers?

Pull the other one mate :p

Seriously, I tend to stick to £8/£9 wines that go on offer for £5 and the offers change every week so you have a good selection to choose from, and ales Asda do 4 for £5 mix and match, Hobgoblin is one of my Fav's, we do one or the other once a week, and only my partner eats meat so we get very small portions from the butcher, last time we was there just 4 thick slices of decent ham, £1.80 and that did her two good sized rolls for two mid day lunches with pickle crisps etc.

Trust me it can be done, I'm very flexible, take Aldi weekly super six deals, total bargain, I often let that dictate what I'm eating that week, not the other way around, I let the offers decide what I'm having for dinner and the money you save allows you to afford to have a few little luxuries, butchers, deli counter etc, but even then I always ask whats on offer, also learning to cook meals from scratch helps a lot, soups, homemade bread etc, very cheap, and like I said keep stocking up on very cheap items if you see them, for example Branston beans, sometimes they go stupid cheap, 4 for £1, I'll buy five of them, that 20 tins for £5.

Also If I'm off work in the evening I'll take a stroll to my local Asda and they very often have last day bargins, today for exmaple, hot cross buns, 4 for 6p, yes, 6p, that's my breakfast sorted.

And to follow on from my previous post don't write-off places like Poundland letting your pride get in the way, yes a 'lot' of stuff in there is junk, but they do have some decent named products in there that you genuinely can't get as cheap anywhere else, they just work off the principle that you pick up a load of the tat as well and that's where they make there real money from the cheap Chinese manufactured stuff but I don't fall in that trap.
 
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Suspended
Joined
22 Apr 2015
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2,634
Around £15 a week for 2 adults (including sirloin steak and a bottles of wine plus lots of ethically sourced trendy foods whose names I can't spell). Shop smart people.. It's easy.

Back in reality land - around £100 for two adults. Could save a LOT if I didn't drink so much coffee at work and made my own lunch but hey ho...

Edit DOH!
 
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Soldato
Joined
29 Mar 2011
Posts
4,908
If we include everything and I mean everything, fags, booze, food, eating out etc its about £200 a week. But that's everything, in fact thinking about it I could probably get the gas bill in as well on some weeks.
 
Soldato
Joined
30 May 2008
Posts
7,788
If we include everything and I mean everything, fags, booze, food, eating out etc its about £200 a week. But that's everything, in fact thinking about it I could probably get the gas bill in as well on some weeks.

£200 a week on food and you opt to live in Liverpool? :p
 
Soldato
Joined
29 Mar 2011
Posts
4,908
I don't opt to live anywhere I am stuck in Liverpool, I have family that are more important and close.

I would leave if I could but schooling and family prevent me leaving atm.

In about 10 years I will be free as a bird. ;)

I said everything including eating out normal that is, not some crazy £100 romantic meal that we have about twice a year.
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
14,700
I'd be interested to know, those people spending ~£100 odd a week:

  • Where do you shop
  • How often do you shop - once a week / once a day
  • Do you buy lots of name-brand products
  • Do you make a list for the week or just browse whatever takes your fancy
  • Do you cook from scratch, or do you buy a lot of ready meals / processed foods like pre-prepared sauces / instant rice
  • Do you buy a lot of meat
  • Does a lot of that spend go on lunch time 'meal deals' and coffee shops

Just doing a bit of research - any input would be really appreciated. :)
 
Associate
Joined
5 Mar 2012
Posts
1,281
2 adults

£40-£50 - She doesn't eat breakfast, I have cottage cheese and a banana every day, though on Friday I have a bacon sandwich. For lunch prawns with salad or crayfish with salad and dinner, meat on 3 days for me, 2 for her and then fish or veg with salad. Weekend in the winter is make something from what's left and then another £15 on some meat for Sunday lunch/dinner.

That doesn't include alcohol.
 
Caporegime
Joined
20 May 2007
Posts
39,701
Location
Surrey
Seriously, I tend to stick to £8/£9 wines that go on offer for £5 and the offers change every week so you have a good selection to choose from, and ales Asda do 4 for £5 mix and match, Hobgoblin is one of my Fav's, we do one or the other once a week, and only my partner eats meat so we get very small portions from the butcher, last time we was there just 4 thick slices of decent ham, £1.80 and that did her two good sized rolls for two mid day lunches with pickle crisps etc.

Trust me it can be done, I'm very flexible, take Aldi weekly super six deals, total bargain, I often let that dictate what I'm eating that week, not the other way around, I let the offers decide what I'm having for dinner and the money you save allows you to afford to have a few little luxuries, butchers, deli counter etc, but even then I always ask whats on offer, also learning to cook meals from scratch helps a lot, soups, homemade bread etc, very cheap, and like I said keep stocking up on very cheap items if you see them, for example Branston beans, sometimes they go stupid cheap, 4 for £1, I'll buy five of them, that 20 tins for £5.

Also If I'm off work in the evening I'll take a stroll to my local Asda and they very often have last day bargins, today for exmaple, hot cross buns, 4 for 6p, yes, 6p, that's my breakfast sorted.

And to follow on from my previous post don't write-off places like Poundland letting your pride get in the way, yes a 'lot' of stuff in there is junk, but they do have some decent named products in there that you genuinely can't get as cheap anywhere else, they just work off the principle that you pick up a load of the tat as well and that's where they make there real money from the cheap Chinese manufactured stuff but I don't fall in that trap.

So £5 is already gone from your budget on wine or ale, leaving £30 for two adults for a whole week including as you say, produce from your local butcher and grocer.

I am sorry but it just doesn't add up (literally) :p
 
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