I don't like going out for dinner.

The do agree really, although I enjoy the experience (ish) it's find it extremely difficult to justify. I think it's simply a symptom of our indulgence addicted society, see the normality of things such as property deposit sized wedding bills, typical cars being affordable only due to cheap debt, and a large minority of people having the latest technology with trimmings.
 
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I just don't appreciate food enough to justify spending a lot on a decent place.
Some friends regularly go out for their £150 per head dinners (part if the "let's take a photo of our dinner" brigade).

The view of "you don't have to cook and clear up" is outweighed by the faff of having to travel there and back and the cost IMO.

The Mrs like going out for breakfast but last time we went out, 2 cooked breakfasts and a couple of hot drinks set us back around £40-45.

A quick trip to TGI's for 2 adults and a kid (where the food was the bog standard deep fried and grilled bits) set us back around £70-80 and nothing better than can be knocked up at home.

Other than when on holiday, I don't think we've been out to a restaurant for well over a year.
 
It can be hit and miss.

Two standout dissapointments this month were a curry where the rice had clearly been dried out and then reheated. And a family meal out in a gastropub, I had a steak and ale pie which anyone with little effort could beat at home. Fortunately, you are forgetting about the social element which makes up for the 'I can do this at home' bit. No staring at the TV and if people just look down at their phones all the time, then there really is no point going out!
 
Being able to cook does put a downer on going out for an average meal. I’ve become very selective, and especially when you factor in London pricing which means you’re paying £50/head at most decent independent places.

I also order depending on what I can cook at home. Rarely order pasta when out for example.

Roasts on the other hand are easy to cook but very time consuming. There’s something nice about a couple pints at the pub and a big roast dished up to you with no clearing up afterwards etc.
 
Scam said:
Being able to cook does put a downer on going out for an average meal. I’ve become very selective, and especially when you factor in London pricing which means you’re paying £50/head at most decent independent places.

I also order depending on what I can cook at home. Rarely order pasta when out for example.

Roasts on the other hand are easy to cook but very time consuming. There’s something nice about a couple pints at the pub and a big roast dished up to you with no clearing up afterwards etc.
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Absolutely. Being in the trade I can get a decent steak. The mrs can cook it to perfection and its "cheap".
But we still go out to eat steak... The meat may not be as good.. But theres no washing up and the mrs gets a night off.

For me, And I hope for my customers its more than just food.
 
mattyg said:
It shouldn't just be about the food. It should be also about the experience. Not just fine dining. But getting out of the house. Going into town, Having a look in around the local shops etc.. Popping into a nice friendly Cafe or Restaurant and just relaxing with friends/Family etc.

Town centres are hit hard, The high street as we knew it is dying and being replaced with charity shops or just left empty.. If we dont support local the future looks a bit bleak.

Biased...Yes. I own 3 Hospitality sites. But I love my town and want to support its regrowth.

Use it or lose it....
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I think that's the thing for a lot of us. We don't enjoy the package.
Its cheaper, easier, more relaxing to stay home.

The allure of town centres has never really been there for me. Now, the cost aspect just makes it all the less appealing.


Give me a rural pub vs a fancy inner city restaurant any day
 
Scam said:
Being able to cook does put a downer on going out for an average meal. I’ve become very selective, and especially when you factor in London pricing which means you’re paying £50/head at most decent independent places.

I also order depending on what I can cook at home. Rarely order pasta when out for example.

Roasts on the other hand are easy to cook but very time consuming. There’s something nice about a couple pints at the pub and a big roast dished up to you with no clearing up afterwards etc.
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Agree with this. 50 a head is more than I can stomach. Usually we end up at places 50-70 in total.
Can't remember ever hitting 50 a head.

Usually it's 15ish for a main. 5 for each drink and 7-10 for a starter/dessert. Rarely have dessert as usually find that the biggest let down in a "standard" place to eat.
 
I like going out for dinner but equally quite happy to do a takeaway and film night :-)

With things like Hello Fresh, it is very easy to make great quality meals without having to think about the ingredients/what to buy.
 
MrRockliffe said:
I like going out for dinner but equally quite happy to do a takeaway and film night :-)

With things like Hello Fresh, it is very easy to make great quality meals without having to think about the ingredients/what to buy.
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That's a good idea. Might look into hello fresh as a once a week thing. How good is it?
 
skyripper said:
There is a world of difference between eating at Pizza Express type of restaurant and going fine dining. There is a world of good food out there if you look for it.

Although taking kids to good restaurants is generally a waste of everyone's time.
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Wait, Pizza Express isn't fine dining??!
 
413x said:
Usually it's 15ish for a main. 5 for each drink and 7-10 for a starter/dessert. Rarely have dessert as usually find that the biggest let down in a "standard" place to eat.
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I wish it was that cheap around here :p
MrRockliffe said:
I like going out for dinner but equally quite happy to do a takeaway and film night :)
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I find takeaways even more of a let down sometimes. We went through a stage of ordering takeaway pizza, as we have a few really good Neapolitan places nearby. But the quality is much worse once it's been stuck in a box, sweating, toppings fallen off etc. We had 3-4 takeaways in a row and thought you know what, this is rubbish. Went and had a sit-in pizza and one of the places and it was 10x better. Delivery wasn't even much cheaper (if at all?). Total false economy.
 
I literally never eat out, well i do but only when i cannot avoid it like some gathering or whatever

Probably the reason why I am over 40 and never had food poisoning in my whole life.
 
I'm no chef but I can cook a good meal. Prior to Lockdowns we would eat out frequently. Then lockdown came and we decided to take turns once a week to cook something more creative to replace not being able to eat out. We really enjoyed this.

Now we are back to eating out again we don't always enjoy it! I find myself looking at the significant increase in prices and feel reluctant to pay what they are asking. I'm also very aware of portion sizes and service.

A very good local restaurant that we have started going to again, cooks fabulous food. The prices are still quite high for eating out local. But the thing that really winds me up is the level of service. Yes, they are incredibly polite. But every time we go, we wait 15-20 minutes for drinks and the same again to take your order. There are plenty of staff but even when there are less than 4 tables in use it takes an age for service. A two course meal with only one drinking alcohol will come to over £70.

A local pub we visit serves pub food, the service is quick but again for pub food your still spending in excess of £50 again only one person drinking.

As a contrast at the weekend we discovered in Newcastle a great place called The Thai House Cafe. No alcohol served but you can take your own (We didnt) Food incredible, service excellent. We had two main courses and two Thai lemonade and the bill was around £30. The place was full of Thai/Chinese/Asian families and couples which to me is always a good sign. There were only two tables where the people sat at them we speaking english. We loved it and cant wait to go back. We felt like we could be in Asia! (apols to those who have lived in or are Asian)

The Thai café did go someway to rekindle what we liked about going out. However, I think very reasonable prices and good service and food are less common now.
 
Scam said:
I wish it was that cheap around here :p

I find takeaways even more of a let down sometimes. We went through a stage of ordering takeaway pizza, as we have a few really good Neapolitan places nearby. But the quality is much worse once it's been stuck in a box, sweating, toppings fallen off etc. We had 3-4 takeaways in a row and thought you know what, this is rubbish. Went and had a sit-in pizza and one of the places and it was 10x better. Delivery wasn't even much cheaper (if at all?). Total false economy.
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Its quite cheap. Some local pubs are cheaper than takeaway. Probably won't survive though.

Tend to get takeaway once a week. As a lazy Friday treat. But cost is getting OTT. And I'm consistently let down. And I think it's the pre event hype why I do it. As I keep going "this isn't great, I'm not getting one again".
A month later I'm back.

Even pizza express is much better. I'd go as far to say a nice super market pizza and own topping is now better. And 4x cheaper.

Just need to break the habit. But on friday I'm not in the mood to go out.

That's the problem I guess for meals out. I usually reach for the takeaway when I can't be bothered, not that I want some fancy food. And faff of going out is more than cooking yourself.
 
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Going out for a meal as a family is now very expensive. There used to be discounts with the AA that meant we could eat out in the week at several places with a discount of 20% so we would go out every couple of weeks for a pizza or Harvey just because it gets so tedious cooking for 5 in our house, two vegi one one gluten intolerant so often cooking three different variations on a meal. When you go out they all pick what they want and leave the dishes to somebody else.
But now they are older we only go out occasionally as a group, more often to celebrate a birthday. Regular meals out are only as a couple but now down to once a month really with only a shared starter with main.

As a couple we can justify the cost but as a family its just too much now, we did pizzas at the local place the other day, clay oven etc and all very nice but for 6 and the bill came in a £150 with a few drinks :(
 
MrRockliffe said:
It is good, but I'm just about to switch to Gousto.

I've found Hello Fresh to cheap out in some key areas - only get thigh chicken by default now, and you need to pay to upgrade. Missing stuff from the boxes etc
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Just had a look.
Was wondering if it'd be better (price wise) to get 4 meals of the large box (4 people) vs 5 of the regular box (2 people)

Looks like a bout 50 a week. If I scraped the takeaways (cost about 80 a month) probably break even over a month.

Worth a try on one of the trials.
 
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