How to Save Money at Restaurants
If you enjoy the convenience of dining out, but need to reduce the amount of money you spend on food, you can apply some money saving tactics. If you want to save a little money at restaurants, here are a few tips:
Drink Iced Water. Instead of drinking tea or soda, just have water. When we found caffeine was keeping us up too late and adding to health issues, it was time to cut back. Caffeine can contribute to insomnia, heart palpitations, and other health problems. We started having water instead of something with caffeine. But, restaurants had been charging us $2 a person for tea or soda. The move to water saved money right away!
Split Dessert. The key to weight control is often portion control. My wife and I find that we can enjoy the richness of dessert and cut our calories in half by splitting dessert. This also cuts the impact of your dessert on your overall bill. When restaurants offer big desserts like P.F. Changs’ Great Wall of Chocolate, splitting your dessert just makes sense.
Split the Entree. In some cases, particularly Chinese restaurants, entrees are served in large sizes that are meant to be shared. If you order one entree instead of two, you can save a considerable amount of money. Of course, when entrees are meant for one, this can sometimes be socially awkward at the restaurant.
Use a Coupon. Many restaurants publish coupons in neighborhood newspapers. Others mail out coupons through neighborhood junk mail flyers. When a coupon is available, use it. You’ll save money and the restaurant will know that there advertising is working.
Capitalize on a Special. Many of the chain restaurants are running specials where two people can eat for a fixed price or one person can get an appetizer, entree, and dessert for a fixed price. In some cases, these specials can save you serious money. For chain restaurants, a couple can often eat for as low as $25. Since you are skipping tea and soda, you can actually eat for less than $30. Some say that portion sizes are a little smaller for the specials, but that is actually good thing in a country where everyone needs to watch their weight.
Eat Appetizers. Sometimes the appetizers are the best food in a restaurant. With the popularity of bar burgers and quesadillas as appetizers, you can order several appetizers and have enough for a whole meal. This is also a great way to eat your way through an entire game at your local sports bar.
Tip Accordingly. Being a waiter or waitress is hard work. I really love to leave a tip of at least 20%. As a restaurant regular, if I order water, I often tip as if I had ordered tea. However, when waiters let you sit for a long time before taking your order and don’t refill drinks until you are almost finished with your meal, you shouldn’t feel bad about reducing the amount of tip accordingly. If your waiter feels that he should spend time texting friends or counting his tips when your glass is empty, he deserves less of a tip. While I always leave at least 10%, the days of automatically getting 20% or more are gone.
In a tough economy, everyone is hurting and that includes your favorite restaurant chains. But, if you can apply some of these money saving tactics for dining out, you can fit your favorite restaurant in the budget and continue to be a patron. If these tactics reduce your food intake, you can also become a slimmer restaurant patron.
