What's for Dinner?

[vinny]

I know people that eat out frequently. I also know people who complain a lot about money ... yeah, the overlap of those two groups is significant.

I think most of us here post meals because we love to cook. I'm always amazed that other people I know at work etc, especially some of the younger crowd, go out several times a week to eat. I rarely go to a fast food joint, but the other day I did. I got a Wendy's chicken sandwich meal (#6) and it was almost $11! I get upset buying a pork roast that's $15 for a meal for 5 people. How do people afford to eat out all the time or buy prepared foods? Yikes!

I just look at it this way, yes prices have gone up a lot, but if you get the raw materials and create the meal yourself, it's way way cheaper than going out and having someone else prepare and serve it to you.

And tips for fast food, don't get me started!

Some of us are concerned about our immediate conveniences, and some of us more of our future comforts...

 

[Rocky]

We only eat out for special occasions with a group of friends. We enjoy being able to converse without any need to cook or serve. Still, it rankles me to spend $25-30 on dishes that I could make for $5.* There are many reasons we rarely eat out but some, in no particular order, are: the prices of the food, the prices of wine, the quality, the food, being pressured to finish and leave the table, the ability to talk and hear people talking, concerns about the kitchen staff and concerns about health and cleanliness in the kitchen.

* An example: One of my favorite pasta dishes is linguine aglio e olio (linguine with garlic and oil). I enjoy this simple dish. We went to one of the local Italian restaurants and it was on the menu for $22.95. I could make a bathtub full of that dish for that amount! (Serves me right for going out for Italian food. It is like a postman going for a walk on his day off.)

 

[ibglowin]

We don't have a lot of fast food options where we live so that alone makes it easy (to skip) and basically forces you to learn how to cook anything and everything the family likes. I am always on the prowl for WooHoo (quick sale) priced items at our local grocery store. Santa fe (30 mins away) has tons of really nice restaurants where dinner for two will set you back $100 easily but we don't do that much except maybe once a year (if that). Lunch out in Santa fe or ABQ on our monthly Costco runs is pretty common. The last time we had lunch at a favorite local breakfast/lunch chain (Weck's) set us back $40 for two (with tip) and Mrs IB had a regular (full) size salad, I had a chicken sandwich with a side salad instead of fries. We split an ice tea.

Just last week the news outlets picked up and ran stories on earnings reports for McDonald's, KFC and other fast food chains saying sales were way down from previous QTR's. I think people have finally gotten fed up with paying close to $15 for a fast food meal.

 

[bstnh1]

Absolutely. I am 20 minutes outside of a small town of about 10,000. No Costco. It is the local butcher and grocery store I have a grievance with.

The butcher owns the farm where the beef comes from. They are direct to market, they could support the town with competitive prices, but usually out price the store by a good margin, so to Costco we go!

It's the small town mindset. What are you gonna do? Drive hours and spend a whole day in the city, or just pay more?

Drive to the city! Most will just suck it up, but not this guy.

Any savings you realize would depend upon how far you have to drive and what you get for mileage. In my case, if I have to drive 40 miles each way , that's a round trip of 80 miles at 22 mpg, gas at $3.55, my cost for fuel alone is over $12.00. Not worth my time, effort and expense unless I'm going to save well over the $12.

 

[bstnh1]

We only eat out for special occasions with a group of friends. We enjoy being able to converse without any need to cook or serve. Still, it rankles me to spend $25-30 on dishes that I could make for $5.* There are many reasons we rarely eat out but some, in no particular order, are: the prices of the food, the prices of wine, the quality, the food, being pressured to finish and leave the table, the ability to talk and hear people talking, concerns about the kitchen staff and concerns about health and cleanliness in the kitchen.

* An example: One of my favorite pasta dishes is linguine aglio e olio (linguine with garlic and oil). I enjoy this simple dish. We went to one of the local Italian restaurants and it was on the menu for $22.95. I could make a bathtub full of that dish for that amount! (Serves me right for going out for Italian food. It is like a postman going for a walk on his day off.)

We only go out for Italian food if it's a group function of some sort that we've been invited to. It's basically cheap pasta with a few add ons that you can make at home for a couple of dollars. Toss ni a grossly overpriced salad, a glass of wine and a tip and you're up over $50 per person.

 

[bstnh1]

We don't have a lot of fast food options where we live so that alone makes it easy (to skip) and basically forces you to learn how to cook anything and everything the family likes. I am always on the prowl for WooHoo (quick sale) priced items at our local grocery store. Santa fe (30 mins away) has tons of really nice restaurants where dinner for two will set you back $100 easily but we don't do that much except maybe once a year (if that). Lunch out in Santa fe or ABQ on our monthly Costco runs is pretty common. The last time we had lunch at a favorite local breakfast/lunch chain (Weck's) set us back $40 for two (with tip) and Mrs IB had a regular (full) size salad, I had a chicken sandwich with a side salad instead of fries. We split an ice tea.

Just last week the news outlets picked up and ran stories on earnings reports for McDonald's, KFC and other fast food chains saying sales were way down from previous QTR's. I think people have finally gotten fed up with paying close to $15 for a fast food meal.

Check out these prices from a McDonald's in Connecticut:

 

[vinny]

Yikes. That's worse than Canadian prices!

 

[vinny]

Any savings you realize would depend upon how far you have to drive and what you get for mileage. In my case, if I have to drive 40 miles each way , that's a round trip of 80 miles at 22 mpg, gas at $3.55, my cost for fuel alone is over $12.00. Not worth my time, effort and expense unless I'm going to save well over the $12.

Yup, It was a 1/4 tank on a $150 fill. Under $50 in fuel and the ONE meat purchase has filled the freezer with much cheaper and higher quality meat. You also have to factor in enjoyment and anticipation over the next few months. Rather than looking at prices, feeling dejected, and not eating any steak, I can happily look forward to good meals and opportunity to share with friends. Quality of life is factored into the fuel cost as well.

 

[Rocky]

Check out these prices from a McDonald's in Connecticut:

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Good Lord! I had no idea the prices had gone up so much. I have not been to a MacDonald's since my poodle Gina died in 2010. She loved the plain cheeseburger, and it was $1 at the time.

I hope I don't bore you all with my "war stories" about when I was young, but I grew up in the Pittsburgh area. Our fast food "go to" was Eat-n-Park, and they had a double decker, much like a Big Mac called the Big Boy. In the late 1950's, a Big Boy cost $.50, fries were $.20 and a milk shake was $.30. For $2.00, I would get three sandwiches, a milkshake and fries (and yes, I had no problem putting away three double-deckers) The point of mentioning this is that periodically, they had a "half price" night, and I could get the above for $1.00. I recall one day after football practice, we piled into one of our buddie's station wagon and hit them on half price night. It took three people to carry out the order. One of our guys, whom we named "The Beast" and who later played for the Forty-Niners, LA Rams and Atlanta Falcons, downed 8 Big Boys! I once saw him eat a whole mincemeat pie as if it were a sandwich.

 

[sour_grapes]

Good Lord! I had no idea the prices had gone up so much. I have not been to a MacDonald's since my poodle Gina died in 2010. She loved the plain cheeseburger, and it was $1 at the time.

I hope I don't bore you all with my "war stories" about when I was young, but I grew up in the Pittsburgh area. Our fast food "go to" was Eat-n-Park, and they had a double decker, much like a Big Mac called the Big Boy. In the late 1950's, a Big Boy cost $.50, fries were $.20 and a milk shake was $.30. For $2.00, I would get three sandwiches, a milkshake and fries (and yes, I had no problem putting away three double-deckers) The point of mentioning this is that periodically, they had a "half price" night, and I could get the above for $1.00. I recall one day after football practice, we piled into one of our buddie's station wagon and hit them on half price night. It took three people to carry out the order. One of our guys, whom we named "The Beast" and who later played for the Forty-Niners, LA Rams and Atlanta Falcons, downed 8 Big Boys! I once saw him eat a whole mincemeat pie as if it were a sandwich.

Prices have NOT gone up that much. That viral McD menu was from a retauraunt at a rest stop. Prices are always quite high at rest stops, and this one was in a very expensive town, to boot.

The average price of a Big Mac in Pennsylvania is $4.47. That corresponds to a value in 1957 of (wait for it...) $0.39. So, if your memory is correct, Big Mac prices have actually not even kept up with inflation since the '50s. Which doesn't surprise me all that much.

 

[bstnh1]

Prices have NOT gone up that much. That viral McD menu was from a retauraunt at a rest stop. Prices are always quite high at rest stops, and this one was in a very expensive town, to boot.

The average price of a Big Mac in Pennsylvania is $4.47. That corresponds to a value in 1957 of (wait for it...) $0.39. So, if your memory is correct, Big Mac prices have actually not even kept up with inflation since the '50s. Which doesn't surprise me all that much.

$4.47 is one of the lowest costs in the country for a Big Mac. There's a site that shows the average price of a Big Mac in every state. https://www.zippia.com/advice/how-much-big-mac-costs-states/ The $18 price in Connecticut is for the meal which includes fries and a drink. The meal in my area is $13.39 plus 8.5% tax. No matter how you look at it, it's a long way from the 15 cent burger.

 

[Rocky]

If you guys and gals can stand one more story, somewhat related to Big Boy burgers. When I was a kid (16 or so), I had '58 Impala convertible, with 348 cu. in. engine, 3 2-barrel carbs and three on the tree. Everyone wanted to race me and I usually held my own. One night we were at Eat-n-Park with our dates and this guy with a '57 Poncho Tri-Power kept needling me to race. I really did not want to, but I could not wimp out in front of "my squeeze." We were all eating at the time, so my buddy and the two girls got out to lighten the load. I put my Big Boy in the glove compartment and went off to race (which I did WIN), came back to Eat-n-Park to pick up my buddy and the girls and completely forgot about the sandwich in the glove compartment. When I found it a few weeks later, I had a very vigorous "penicillin farm" in progress. This is the only picture I have of my baby. My bride had it enlarged, airbrushed and framed for me because I always referred to it as "my first love."

 

[Boatboy24]

Speaking of Costco, just trimmed up a whole brisket that'll go on later tonight for tomorrow's dinner.

 

[sour_grapes]

$4.47 is one of the lowest costs in the country for a Big Mac. There's a site that shows the average price of a Big Mac in every state. https://www.zippia.com/advice/how-much-big-mac-costs-states/ The $18 price in Connecticut is for the meal which includes fries and a drink. The meal in my area is $13.39 plus 8.5% tax. No matter how you look at it, it's a long way from the 15 cent burger.

Are you just adding more info? Your tone seems to be contradictory, but everything you write seems to comport with what I wrote.

I used this source for the Big Mac pricing (https://www.cashnetusa.com/blog/most-expensive-mcdonalds-in-the-world/) but the differences are small. I didn't choose Pennsylvania to get a low price; I chose it because that is where Rocky's boyhood memories were located.

 

[winemaker81]

Our elder son took us out to eat in honor of my birthday. Given the choice, we went for sushi. Their sushi is among the best I've had, and it's one of those things to go out for.



For dessert he made a ricotta cake with tart cherry compote, which is a keeper!

 

[Boatboy24]

Our elder son took us out to eat in honor of my birthday. Given the choice, we went for sushi. Their sushi is among the best I've had, and it's one of those things to go out for.

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For dessert he made a ricotta cake with tart cherry compote, which is a keeper!

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Happy birthday!

 

[winemaker81]

Happy birthday!

Thanks!

 

[bstnh1]

Are you just adding more info? Your tone seems to be contradictory, but everything you write seems to comport with what I wrote.

I used this source for the Big Mac pricing (https://www.cashnetusa.com/blog/most-expensive-mcdonalds-in-the-world/) but the differences are small. I didn't choose Pennsylvania to get a low price; I chose it because that is where Rocky's boyhood memories were located.

Yes, I did add information. My original comment was about the Big Mac Meal in Connecticut which is ridiculously expensive at that rest area. Your response dealt with the price of a Big Mac Sandwich alone which cannot be compared to the cost of the meal. So I pointed out the cost of a Big Mac meal in my are to substantiate the fact that McDonald's Big Mac meals are expensive. Compare the Big Mac meals to the Whopper meal at Burger King that's only $6.99 with the coupons they flood the market with. I get a sheet of 20 BK coupons in the mail every month and zilch from McDonalds.

 

[Boatboy24]

 

[vinny]

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You are now my new hero! This is a life goal.