We still dine out 3x a week. It's fun and it's a good reason to get dressed up and out of the house. Our kids are teens and they adore trying new cuisine/old favourites.

Such an interesting thread and perspectives! I have 3 kids and we used to eat out 1-2x a week and it was always enjoyable. However, we have stopped in recent years due to high costs (and we now have teens who eat more and have tricky schedules). BUT, I do miss the bonding time. When we eat at home, I am more tired having cooked dinner and more often than not we end up eating at different time bc of schedules so it's just not the same.

Anonymous wrote:We’ve never wasted money on take out or going out to eat. It’s a horrible habit to teach your children. The food is generally very unhealthy and it’s terrible for savings.

I bet your children are very popular when they go to school dressed in flour sacks with their lunchboxes (or more likely plastic bread bags) filled with rice and lentils 5 days a week.

You should apply for that "Extreme Cheapskates" show with people who eat off of strangers' plates in restaurants and fish out rotting food from dumpsters.

Anonymous wrote:Wow. I never realized the food section of DCUM was full of sociopaths.

I think there are just a couple people with an "agenda."

Wow. I never realized the food section of DCUM was full of sociopaths.

Anonymous wrote:I don't tip, ever. It saves a lot of money and makes life easier.

Please tell me you are lying.

Anonymous wrote:We’ve never wasted money on take out or going out to eat. It’s a horrible habit to teach your children. The food is generally very unhealthy and it’s terrible for savings.

You are joyless and miserable. I taught my kids to enjoy life, including meeting friends for a meal at a restaurant. We are fit, healthy, and save a lot.

Anonymous wrote:I wish people where I live shared the same sentiment. It's impossible to get a dinner reservation after 4pm unless you book weeks in advance. Even at the "cheap" places.

Because there is a whole under the table industry now that hordes reservations that tries to sell them like tickets to a concert. They're the ticketmaster of restaurant dining. Lack of ability to book a reservation doesn't mean anything these days. I saw a news price of a college kid in New York who was making like six figures running restaurant reservations. He even sold one for $600, iirc.


Besides, the pain will really settle in when the DMV gets slammed with impending recession later in the year.

Anonymous wrote:We’ve never wasted money on take out or going out to eat. It’s a horrible habit to teach your children. The food is generally very unhealthy and it’s terrible for savings.

I think your attitude is kind of horrible. Going out to eat can be a pleasant and enjoyable family experience, there is no reason to make it such an unpleasant thing in your kids' eyes. We go out to eat with our kids, we teach them it is a way to celebrate. Calling it unhealthy and a horrible habit promotes bad attitudes toward food and enjoyment.