Is the future of eating out tacos and chicken?

[Anonymous]

Do not forget tostada salad with your choice of grilled meat!

[Anonymous]

I hate tacos and I can cook the chicken myself, so no.

I order out for dishes I cannot easily make myself: lamen (because it's not the same thing as instant) and corresponding noodles from other Asian cuisines, Indian curries, Chinese dishes, etc. I can cook western European dishes. I can do my own vegetarian sushi, but I order party platters and raw fish sushi (don't want to deal with that myself).

[Anonymous]

The cost of eating out these days is really depressing me

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes if you live in Vienna

This made me lol. I live in Vienna and this post hits home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The cost of eating out these days is really depressing me

The cost plus the miserable experience of it has really ruined it for me. The restaurants are all short staffed so everyone is harried and stressed. You wait forever for a table, forever for food, the server is stressed out and anxious, and whatever you ask for is seen as a nuisance, even if you’re the most easy going customer ever, and they act like the fact they gave you food at all was a gift or something. Paying $120 to have that experience at a freaking Texas Roadhouse will put anyone off dining out.

When Covid hit and restaurants were struggling everyone really understood. We excused sloppy take out while they pivoted; we excused short staff and bad dining experiences while they bounced back. But neither have improved while food quality has tanked and prices have tripled. There’s a point it is simply neither cost effective nor a stress reliever (I’m too busy to cook, let’s go out) nor an enjoyable experience any longer and we’re there I think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The cost of eating out these days is really depressing me

The cost plus the miserable experience of it has really ruined it for me. The restaurants are all short staffed so everyone is harried and stressed. You wait forever for a table, forever for food, the server is stressed out and anxious, and whatever you ask for is seen as a nuisance, even if you’re the most easy going customer ever, and they act like the fact they gave you food at all was a gift or something. Paying $120 to have that experience at a freaking Texas Roadhouse will put anyone off dining out.

When Covid hit and restaurants were struggling everyone really understood. We excused sloppy take out while they pivoted; we excused short staff and bad dining experiences while they bounced back. But neither have improved while food quality has tanked and prices have tripled. There’s a point it is simply neither cost effective nor a stress reliever (I’m too busy to cook, let’s go out) nor an enjoyable experience any longer and we’re there I think.

Not to mention all the iPad kids with no headphones and parents with no shame.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hate tacos and I can cook the chicken myself, so no.

I order out for dishes I cannot easily make myself: lamen (because it's not the same thing as instant) and corresponding noodles from other Asian cuisines, Indian curries, Chinese dishes, etc. I can cook western European dishes. I can do my own vegetarian sushi, but I order party platters and raw fish sushi (don't want to deal with that myself).

Who the heck hates tacos?? That's like saying you hate sandwiches-- it's just a convenient vehicle for whatever protein and veggies you want. Korean tacos with bulgogi and kimchi. Breakfast tacos with eggs and salsa. Jerk chicken tacos. Traditional al pastor or American style ground beef.

It's weirder to hate tacos than to hate pizza, IMO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not if tacos are $5 each. That's insane. https://www.tacobamba.com/menus/

I think casually eating out is a thing of the past. I doubt prices will ever drop.

Two tacos from Taco Bamba is a meal, IMO. They are big and have a lot of toppings. That's $10. In 2024, that's an incredibly cheap meal. And their traditional tacos and breakfast tacos are $4 (and are a bit smaller). A typical takeout order for our family of 4 would be:

Five $5 tacos
Three $4 traditional tacos
One order of queso and chips ($5.50)

That's $42.50 before tax and tip, which is unbelievably cheap for feeding our entire family with really tasty food. We would spend more at Chick-Fil-A and the food would suck.

I have grown up eating food truck tacos. They would average about two dollars each and three of them was a meal. So when I’m comparing that even four years ago when I could get a two dollar tacos, yeah it’s expensive. My entire family would eat for around $25, give or take a taco. So I scoff at five dollar or even four dollar tacos.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The cost of eating out these days is really depressing me

The cost plus the miserable experience of it has really ruined it for me. The restaurants are all short staffed so everyone is harried and stressed. You wait forever for a table, forever for food, the server is stressed out and anxious, and whatever you ask for is seen as a nuisance, even if you’re the most easy going customer ever, and they act like the fact they gave you food at all was a gift or something. Paying $120 to have that experience at a freaking Texas Roadhouse will put anyone off dining out.

When Covid hit and restaurants were struggling everyone really understood. We excused sloppy take out while they pivoted; we excused short staff and bad dining experiences while they bounced back. But neither have improved while food quality has tanked and prices have tripled. There’s a point it is simply neither cost effective nor a stress reliever (I’m too busy to cook, let’s go out) nor an enjoyable experience any longer and we’re there I think.

Not to mention all the iPad kids with no headphones and parents with no shame.

How old were the parents? I bet they were in their 30's.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nah, I like lobster rolls and pizza

Where do you go for lobster rolls?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not if tacos are $5 each. That's insane. https://www.tacobamba.com/menus/

I think casually eating out is a thing of the past. I doubt prices will ever drop.

This. We are basically down to chickfila/cava/chipotle/pizza to feed the family in a pinch or a planned fancy dinner date and nothing in between. Gone are the random nights of taking the family to Sweetwater.

Exactly our experience in NoVa. Can’t drop $100 on a weeknight meal out.