How much do you spend on eating out?

[Bess]

Since I'm using the fantastic "Pear Budget" (http://www.pearbudget.com), I'm realizing how much we are spending on eating out!!!! It's shameful!!!! And it's not just eating big meals out...it's also grabbing little things like soda and "snacks" and such. Just curious what other people spend on eating out. Thank you for making me feel better (I hope). ;)

[johnandtinagilbert]

family of 7 - maybe $30/month that's cuz dh eats a sub a couple of times a month...otherwise...we don't...homemade pizza on Fridays

[SusanG]

Do you mean per week, per month? DH spends about $40 a week on lunches out while he's at work. We probably spend $20 or so a week on fast food and snacks we grab while out. For actual restaurants, we spend between $30 and $70 a week, depending on whether or not we go out once without the kids in addition to our weekly dinner out with the kids.

[Kelli in TN]

Eating. Out?

 

Oh. You mean like when you say "Hey, take that out on the back porch and eat it there so you don't make a mess on my floor."

 

I am teasing. I remember eating out. Vaguely.

[Bess]

Do you mean per week, per month? DH spends about $40 a week on lunches out while he's at work. We probably spend $20 or so a week on fast food and snacks we grab while out. For actual restaurants, we spend between $30 and $70 a week, depending on whether or not we go out once without the kids in addition to our weekly dinner out with the kids.

 

 

Yes, per month. Thanks!

[Bess]

Eating. Out?

 

Oh. You mean like when you say "Hey, take that out on the back porch and eat it there so you don't make a mess on my floor."

 

I am teasing. I remember eating out. Vaguely.

 

 

:lol: Thanks for the laugh! I *wish* I could say "vaguely" too. But. No.

[jmgconner]

$60 per month for our family of 6. That's equivalent to 3 fast food dinners OR one nice casual restaurant (sometimes two depending on if kids eat free and how much we order).

[SusanG]

Yes, per month. Thanks!

 

I'd say $450 a month, on average, then.

[TammyinTN]

sorry for the double post

[TammyinTN]

With the dollar being so weak I'm sure we spend over $300 a month eating in local establishment. We just really enjoy ourselves I guess.:D

[Julie in CA]

We eat one fast food meal per week--usually Sunday lunch so I don't have to cook. Each time it is $22 (we always get the same thing, lol!). Adds up to $88 per month for the 7 of us, but I'm rounding it up because we eat pizza or something else maybe once every month or two.

 

$100 per month.

[Sue G in PA]

Maybe $50 per month whereas it used to be closer to $150. Not in the budget. In fact, it is probably closer to $35 now. We do get pizza every now and again. I need to start making my own. But, for our family of 9 (okay so 8 b/c baby doesn't count!) it is quite expensive. I rely on coupons and use things like Chuck E. Cheese as an incentive for good behavior. We obviously haven't been there in decades. :lol: It's depressing, really. I was just sick to my stomach today realizing that I put $40 in gas in the van yesterday and will have to get more gas this evening to get to my kids swim picnic for the end of the year of swim team. Very depressing. Very.

[Mrs Mungo]

I'd say $100-$200/month. Hubby has to go to lunches, the kids and I get something quick for lunch on occassion, we order pizza once or twice a month, maybe once a month we eat out at a "real" restaurant where we spend $50-$60. It adds up.

[JFSinIL]

Far less than the $100 I selected, as we do NOT eat out as a rule. Maybe the pizza joint every six or more months. It is just too expensive.

[WTMindy]

Since I'm using the fantastic "Pear Budget" (http://www.pearbudget.com), I'm realizing how much we are spending on eating out!!!! It's shameful!!!! And it's not just eating big meals out...it's also grabbing little things like soda and "snacks" and such. Just curious what other people spend on eating out. Thank you for making me feel better (I hope). ;)

 

We go out to dinner once a week (usually fast food) and spend less than $20 per meal for our family of 4. (We don't get drinks usually.) We don't do much spur of the moment snacks or coffees because it just isn't dh's style. (I'd probably do a lot more of it if it were just me!)

[Sasharowan]

You forgot WAYYYYY too much as an option on the poll :). We have fallen into the habit of picking up fast food on the way home from ballgames. With 6 people in the family, that adds up fast.

[lynn]

DH and I have a standing saturday lunch date and a couple times a month we get pizza or everyone come with us.

[newbie]

Far less than the $100 I selected, as we do NOT eat out as a rule. Maybe the pizza joint every six or more months. It is just too expensive.

 

I agree, I added in Starbucks into that budget and thats only once a month with a Heath Bar Fantasy.

 

Jet

[Jennifer in MI]

We used to eat out a lot! It was fun! But, then we had a child with multiple food allergies and we just stopped altogether. Now that he's outgrown a few of those allergies, it's been easier to eat out. But, we choose not to very often. We'd rather save that money and go on nicer vacations! (We do eat out on our vacations! I'm not cooking then. So, I'm not including those meals. Those are on our vacation budget.)

 

We do eat out on Easter Sunday and usually one Friday night before a Tiger's game. Dh belongs to a nice club through work and it's nice to splurge a couple times a year there for the family. But, really, that's it. We ordered pizza as a family once last year when we moved.

[Melissa in Australia]

maybe $10 per month. we get chips.

[Ashleen]

We used to eat out a *lot*. But when it started costing as much to eat in a fast food place as it used to cost to eat in a decent restaurant and it started costing as much to eat in a decent restaurant as it used to cost to eat in a nice restaurant, we decided to stay home more. Also, learning to cook better and becoming Food Network fanatics has made dining at home better. Now when we do eat out, we realize we could have had a better meal more cheaply at home (as opposed to the first few years of marriage, when restaurant meals truly tasted a lot better than home-cooked).

[Chris in CA]

We seldom go out to eat - prefering to spend the expendable on more tangible things :)

[Colleen]

I believe we eat out a good deal more than the average family with five young children. I am referring to all of us; Hans and I don't often eat out on our own. We typically eat at restaurants ~ not fast-food places ~ with our boys at least once a week. We go to some great, local, independent restaurants. They aren't unusually expensive, but the bill gets up there with seven of us. We don't get snack foods on-the-go, but we do often have a bit to eat at the cafe of the natural food store where I grocery shop. So things like that all add up. I don't have a clue how much it averages per month, but I'd guesstimate in the two to three hundred dollar range.

[Trivium Academy]

Here, feel better about yourself! I had to add it up to show dh because I was doing our new budget (itemizing all our expenses for the last couple of months) and I was floored when I realized we have spent $1000 this month :svengo:(yes, it's not over) on outside eating expenses. Usually we only eat out on Sundays after church as a family but it seems moving back to a more populated place has made our eyes bigger than our wallet. We are broke, inching by for the rest of the month. See the reason for a new budget? I think I have new gray hairs over this...

[Tracey in TX]

Here, feel better about yourself! I had to add it up to show dh because I was doing our new budget (itemizing all our expenses for the last couple of months) and I was floored when I realized we have spent $1000 this month :svengo:(yes, it's not over) on outside eating expenses. Usually we only eat out on Sundays after church as a family but it seems moving back to a more populated place has made our eyes bigger than our wallet. We are broke, inching by for the rest of the month. See the reason for a new budget? I think I have new gray hairs over this...

Jessica,

Is that because of the move and still settling into your home? Relos, vacations and any event out of the ordinary always boost our dining out budget (which is ridiculously high anyhow). But, sheesh!, a grand! That's some serious munching going on :) Any good surf and turf?

[Tracey in TX]

We budget $300/month, but know it's definitely higher most months.

 

-pizza delivered every Friday night

-Sunday after church dinner

-drive through at least once/wk

-DH eats lunch out daily and dinners 2-3X/wk (work)

-any out of ordinary sports events, we dine out with group

 

Generally, we love to eat out :) It's a social event for us.

[PariSarah]

. . . we spent at least two hundred a month. Probably more. Eating out was one of our major forms of family recreation. And our vacations were generally gastronomic tours of the regions of France.

 

*sigh* I miss full employment.

[Amy loves Bud]

We eat out every Sunday after church, and usually one night each week. Bud also eats lunch out quite often for work, and since he's self-employed, it is also our expense. We don't eat fast food except for an occasional (maybe once a month) Chick-Fil-A stop for the kids, but we do eat lunch at our wonderful grocery when we do the grocery shopping. I would estimate we are typically in the $400 range.

[Trivium Academy]

I wish it was all on expensive fare! Nope, convenience food, a few restaurants locally that dh wanted to try, dh eating out for his lunch at $8-$10 each time just for him x4 days a week (ouch!), pizza (2x), etc. I was appalled when I added up the itemizing. I don't think I had ONE shrimp in all that, lol.

[siloam]

Since I'm using the fantastic "Pear Budget" (http://www.pearbudget.com), I'm realizing how much we are spending on eating out!!!! It's shameful!!!! And it's not just eating big meals out...it's also grabbing little things like soda and "snacks" and such. Just curious what other people spend on eating out. Thank you for making me feel better (I hope). ;)

 

We usually only eat out on special occasions, because a sit down meal runs $60 for all of us. Fast food is $20-25 for all of us, we do that about once a month. Coffee is also a treat, dh gets about one a week, and I about once a month.

 

An average month runs $30 and a special month runs $90.

 

Heather

[Bess]

Here, feel better about yourself! I had to add it up to show dh because I was doing our new budget (itemizing all our expenses for the last couple of months) and I was floored when I realized we have spent $1000 this month :svengo:(yes, it's not over) on outside eating expenses. Usually we only eat out on Sundays after church as a family but it seems moving back to a more populated place has made our eyes bigger than our wallet. We are broke, inching by for the rest of the month. See the reason for a new budget? I think I have new gray hairs over this...

 

Okay, I feel better. :D Thank you so much! :lol:

[Jenny in Florida]

Mostly, that's because I honestly don't have a clue how much he spends. He doesn't go out every day, and most of the time when they do go out it's something like Taco Bell or Wendy's (love that 99 cent menu). But, still, I don't track that.

 

If I look at just what I spend on drive-through snacks and picking up an occasional soda or coffee when I'm out with the kids, plus a couple of family meals out each month, I think we're under $200. Possibly way under, if you look at averages, because we often go months without doing the restaurant thing at all. My daughter is home for the summer, though, and we're all in kind of a festive mood and trying to get out and do things. So, right now we're probably running closer to the $200 mark.

[Dayle in Guatemala]

We eat out once a month. Period. We spend about $25-30 on that. It's just too expensive on our budget. We do, however, have fun theme nights at home--Chinese night, Pizzaria night, Salad bar, Taco bar, different desert themes. That's cheaper and we can have fun as a family watching a movie and having fun food.

[elegantlion]

We eat out about once a month. We get take out about twice a week. By getting carryout instead we save at least $8-10 on tip and drinks. We definitely spend less than 100.00.

 

Dh has started taking his own lunch.

[MomofSeven]

Eating out for us entails munching on the samples at Sams Club. Not in the budget, and certainly not practicle with 5 kids and a baby. Truth be told, I don't miss eating out in the least. I love to cook and if I have a hankering for something unusual (Thai or Lebanese), I figure out how to cook it myself.

[Colleen]

I was floored when I realized we have spent $1000 this month :svengo:(yes, it's not over) on outside eating expenses.

 

Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I feel better now.:D That's a hefty chunk of change, but...your grocery bill's been a mere pittance, right? RIGHT?!;) Ya know, one thing I keep in mind is that we go only to locally-owned establishments. Can't think when I last went to a chain restaurant. I can't expect local restaurants to support my industry if I don't support theirs. The great thing about sustainability, food or otherwise, is that it makes good sense to support the local economy.:)

[Mom to Aly]

We almost never eat out, but, when we do, we often use restaurant.com certificates. If you haven't tried them, you should. Don't buy straight from them, sign up to start an account with your email addy, and they will soon send you discount codes for 40%-60% off, sometimes even 70% off. You get real $25 off certificates for $3-$8!

[Sugarfoot]

Can I please just say, WAY TOO MUCH! :scared:

[Trivium Academy]

That's the argument Dh came up with when I :svengo: at the sight of the total! "At least we're supporting the economy." Yeah, but I don't plan to do it again any time soon.

[Guest Virginia Dawn]

$60 per month for our family of 6. That's equivalent to 3 fast food dinners OR one nice casual restaurant (sometimes two depending on if kids eat free and how much we order).

 

Ditto, sometimes less.

[Quiver0f10]

We almost never eat out anymore so I am guessing it's maybe $20 a month for an occasional water bottle or pack of gum. If we do stop for fast food it's Subway.

[Parrothead]

We don't have many places to eat out in town. If we go to the big city we will either eat in a resturant or grab something from a burger joint.

 

I think that since we don't spend much on eating out I spend more than others on convienence foods.

[Dawn in Ohio]

I would guess we spend about $100 a month eating out.

 

(These polls give me the impression that I should keep track of this spending? I don't keep track of anything! Am I the only one??:001_huh:)

[SusanG]

I would guess we spend about $100 a month eating out.

 

(These polls give me the impression that I should keep track of this spending? I don't keep track of anything! Am I the only one??:001_huh:)

 

 

I've never kept track of spending, so don't worry. I had to sit and think about how often we eat and actually jot things down to come up with my total for this thread, lol.

[Angela in GA]

We just revamped our entire budget. I would say less than $100 per month now. I wish we could go out more, but it's not in the cards right now.

[KAR120C]

I combine our grocery and dining budgets at $140/week, and the more the groceries cost the less we spend in restaurants... but we spend about $100 on groceries per week, which leaves $160-200 for restaurants most months. DH takes leftovers for lunch, and DS and I very rarely get snacks.

[Kay in Cal]

Wow! Prices are less where you are! We have 4 in our family, and we we spend that on maybe 2 fast food meals, or one casual restaurant. Even if they have a kids menu, we don't get out for less than $50 in general.

[gandpsmommy]

We have a habit of spending a lot of money eating out, but we are improving. We really don't keep track of it, but I would estimate that with dh eating out for lunch everyday that he's working at $10+, our family eating out once or twice a week at nice local establishments or casual dining chain restaurants (Olive Garden, Applebee's, Max & Erma's, Bob Evan's, Red Lobster, etc.), getting pizza once in a while, grabbing snacks or drinks on the go, and picking up subs or something for lunch for the kids once a week, we probably spend over $500 a month.

[*anj*]

We have about $50/month designated for "blow money." This isn't always used for eating out, but it often is. It would get us one pizza dinner and one cheap lunch or one Chinese dinner. Again, we don't even eat out once a month though.

Oh, and sometimes if I forget to bake bread dh will take $6 and get pizza for lunch at a place he really likes near work. But that really only happens about once a month. Other than that he takes his lunch every day.

[Melora in NC]

Well under $100 a month. Some months we might spend as much as $60, but that would be Very Unusual. $40 a month is probably our average.

(Our budget is very tight, and we wouldn't even spend that $40/month average except that our hs book club often goes on to McDonalds to talk, eat, and play after the meetings. When the weather is nice, we have picnics at the park instead, which is Much more pleasant, as well as being a money saver. And now some of our group members have decided to boycott McDonalds for something-or-other, so our eating out expenses may go down further. Which leaves more $ to spend on heating oil! Yay!)