Cut Your Dining-Out Costs

Page Updated on November 24, 2007

• Don't dine out at restaurants. Stay home and cook. Cooking your meal is usually cheaper than buying from a restaurant. If you must eat away from home, have a picnic.
• Only dine out for special occasions. Not only will you save money by reducing the number of times you dine out, but it will also make the experience more special.
• Schedule your dining-out occasions. Whether you're scheduling reservations at a nice restaurant, taking the kids to McDonalds, or ordering Chinese take-out, don't do it on impulse. Eventually, your impulsive fast food trips will end up becoming a habit. Plan ahead of time.
• Incorporate your dining-out with your menus. If you know for sure that you will be dining-out on Thursday, include it in your menus, so you won't buy extra food for a meal you won't have.
• Read the menu before you leave home. Many restaurants have their menu on the Internet now. If you have a fax machine, you can also call the restaurant and ask them to fax the menu to you. You can also stop by the restaurant on your way home from work and pick up a menu to take home. Before you even leave for the restaurant, make sure that they have what you want to eat for the price that you want. For example, if the only meat you eat is chicken, make sure they have several chicken dinners to choose from at various prices (or the specific meal that you would like at the price you are willing to pay for it) rather than just one extremely overpriced chicken dinner. You're much less likely to pay attention to prices and options after you've already gone through the trouble of going to the restaurant, sitting down, and waiting patiently for someone to take your order.
• Skip the main course. Just order appetizers, soups, and salads. Bread usually comes free. Skip the main course completely, and you'll save a ton.
• Skip desert. They're usually overpriced. Go home and have store-bought ice cream instead.
• Don't "super size" fast food. The latest trend in fast food is to order a combo-meal and then "super size" it. This is only worth it if you plan to split the meal into two meals. Otherwise, stick with normal sized food. You'll most likely be just as full after your regular sized meal.
• Hit the buffets. If you have a lot of people to feed, just a few very hungry people, or picky eaters, go to a buffet. Everyone will get what they want and how much they want regardless of price. Just don't bother wasting your money by going to a buffet for a light lunch (unless they have an incredibly cheap lunch special).
• Check out new restaurants. Newer restaurants usually offer better service and cheaper prices because they're trying to establish a customer base. Plus, if the quality isn't that great, you can always get the forgiveness of your date / companion / etc. by using the excuse "It's a new place. I've never been here before."
• Buy from "we make it, you bake it" restaurants. There are many restaurants, such as pizza places, that make the food for you, but don't cook it. They give you the cooking instructions, and you take it home to cook. The quality of food from such places is equal to, if not better than, traditional restaurants and cheaper (often much cheaper). Plus, you can cook it just the way you like it and enjoy it in the comfort of your own home.
• Share your meal. The nice thing about American dining is that we typically get so much food that we can't possibly eat it all in one sitting, so share your meal with a friend. Usually you can just ask for an extra plate, and if you're embarrassed about being thought of as a cheapskate, just make up some excuse about how you just had a huge meal and can't eat a whole dish by yourself. (Make sure to leave a good tip.)
• Share your drink. If your beverage comes with free refills, and you don't mind sharing your companion's germs, share your drink.
• Get cheap drinks. The cheapest way to save money on drinks is to just drink water. Drink all of your water before you order any other beverages. If you must have something with more taste after you finish your water, stick to inexpensive beverages like soda or tea. Avoid drinking alcoholic beverages because they are often overpriced. (Plus, you won't accidentally get tipsy, make a fool of yourself, and have to call for a cab to take you home.)
• Pay attention to beverage refills. Make sure you get free refills. Some wait staff will bring you drink after drink, refill after refill, whether or not you ask for it, and not mention that you're being charged for each one.
• Follow the sales. Pay attention to advertisements for restaurant sales, such as discount combination meals, kids eat free, etc.
• Ask about unadvertised specials. Some restaurants have cheaper prices if you come in during off-peak hours, such as before or after the big dinner rush or on Mondays through Thursdays.
• Use coupons. The is especially common when it comes to fast food. Check your newspapers, phonebook, and mailbox for good deals. You can even find coupons and discounts for your local restaurants online. Just do a search for the restaurant's website and take a look around. (If you find an online discount offer, such as "mention this site and get 15% off" print out the page and bring it with you as a reminder to mention the site and as a backup just in case the person taking your order has no idea what you're talking about.) Some of the best deals I've found have been from local school kids selling discount cards and coupon books. You usually have to pay $5.00 or $10.00 for the card or book, but they eventually pay for themselves. Just make sure you read through the discounts before you purchase the card/book to make sure that you'll actually use enough to break even. (Plus, because it's for a fundraiser, you can include the expense in your budget as a charity expense.) You can also get great discounts by contacting visitor bureaus of places you plan on visiting or in your local area. You can also find deals in tourist directories and hotel brochure stands.
• Check your bill. Always make sure that everything on your bill is what you actually ordered and received. Also make sure that you are not charged for two orders of fries if you only ordered one. Once you start verifying your charges, you'll be surprised how often mistakes are made.
• Complain about food you're not satisfied with. Choose to be a difficult customer. Don't settle for food you don't like. Restaurants will often refund your money or give you an additional meal or future meal for free. (Make sure to leave a good tip.)