Yeah, DC is just no longer worth it. We are balking at the prices. $40-70 per entree seems standard now almost everywhere. Then you need sides that are now pushing $20 ea. $17 glasses of wine. Now they tack on 20% service fees with a note stating it is for the house and split evenly to ensure fair wages... insinuating that it isn't a tip to try to compel you to add a tip on top of the bill. Dining for 2 is now pushing $200+. Ridiculous. Driving up to Baltimore is a far better deal. Or we just go to places like Eden Center where there is tast food for $20 or below. We are just done with dining out in DC.

We get takeout more than going out. It’s a leftover from the pandemic where everything was takeout.

I am decent enough a home cook that I can prepare just about anything I might have cravings for in a very short amount of time for a fraction of the cost a restaurant can prepare it for. And that's without the wholesale discount the restaurants get. Knowing how to prepare something and what it costs, I am honestly dumbfounded why I ever wasted money eating out.

My thoughts as to why working/middle income people such as myself, still eat out regularly even with excessive price hikes. It must be that they perceive the cost for prepared foods as worth more than they really are. I also think based on conversations I have had, is many people lack the confidence in the kitchen believing things they like are too difficult so they don't even attempt to prepare them. Also I would not discount the social aspect to eating out.

But I would consider the largest factor to all of this is this is a cultural trend. For decades now since probably the 80s, when I was a kid, people have eaten out so regularly that they don't realize their was time when eating out was only an occasional treat most working class families.

Prior to very recent times people were more self sufficient and probably by necessity had a more money sense than most of us do today. I am confident that many in developing nations with less disposable income probably still retain that sense of the value of money. When I was growing up, we had home economics classes. I am not 100% confident, but I am probably the last generation to have had such classes. They were mostly a joke then, but at least we learned some cooking and finances.

Thanks to wealth, technology, and a lack of passing down skills, we are now mostly a culture of consumers. Younger generations have grown up in a world where their parents could afford to eat out all the time, where their basic needs were taken care of and basic life skills of previous generations are now taken for granted, and even frowned upon by some. Now days most people are okay with the state of things. The younger generations have only known this way of life, and the older generations who still remember the times before have accumulated enough wealth not to concern themselves with the old way of life. By the way I am not saying the old way is superior.

As inflation continues, and our economy continues down this path I suspect more and more people by necessity will start learning these skills again, hopefully. Unfortunately there are some who wish to keep us forever dependent, unable to self manage, and therefor forever consumers, never knowing the value of things.

We go once a month as a family - $150.
Additionally, my husband and I like to go out 1-2x a month, we spend another $150 total. So $300 a month. Our budget is pretty dialed in, so I’m ok with it.

My son came home from college. Every nice restaurant we could not get a reservation. Places are full.

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.

+1. The internet is full of whiners and doomers. Crummy overrated restaurants near us in the burbs are always slammed. The rich are RICH and tons of people have corporate, LLC, or 501c3 credit cards they use at restaurants.

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.

It's depressing knowing something that I've enjoyed most of my life is now ruined. I didn't eat out frequently but it always seemed a fair price.
Now days you can't even enjoy a visit to Taco Bell without getting reamed.

Ordinarily, we no longer eat out. We have very limited takeout. We never had delivery - that always was too expensive for us.

We still eat out and there are enough places to go where I feel like prices are still fine, and it’s in our budget but I do feel like some restaurants seem just too expensive. When I look at a menu online and entrees are in the 40-50 range it’s really hard for me to think that it’s going to feel worth it to me. I’m not even saying I’m right - I’m in my 50s and maybe this is just what happens as time goes on but that just doesn’t feel right to me especially for just a regular Sat night out with friends kind of place.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have pretty much quit eating out all together. I can no longer justify spending $17 for a wrap or sandwich from a truck even, $25 dollars for a plate of food that was $12 or $14 three years ago and that doesn't include tips. Also you're now expected to tip for even takeout. It used to be an occasional treat going out, but now it seems like a depressing experience. I am pretty much done with eating out these days. On the bright side, I am learning to cook just about anything I want. It's not perfect but close enough that I don't miss those things I used to get going out. To that I am wondering who here can still afford to eat out, and if so, do you feel like you're getting ripped off?

Are you posting from DC? People here are rich from 25 years of war, concentration of the nation's wealth, revolving doors, fake jobs, fake nonprofits, etc. And most are swiping a company credit card when they go out to eat, so it doesn't actually cost them a thing.

BS. We can afford private school and eating out because I work in the private sector like Musk.

House paid for long ago. Older car.
No debt.
We spend on food and yard care.

Just paid $8.98 for a slice of pizza that had to be reheated in the oven, and .50 for a glass of water. Yeah I am done.

Anonymous wrote:I was looking at the menu for a fairly new DC restaurant. Highlights include:

$19 carrots
$19 brussel sprouts
$14 bread

I'm just done with DC dining. Those prices don't even include tax and tip. They'll probably add who knows what recovery and surcharge fees.

So, soooooooo done with dining out.

😳 for veggies and bread.
Yeah. No thank you.

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.