# How often do you eat out/get take out?



## buckytom (Dec 13, 2006)

we eat takeout an inordinate amount every week of late; every day for a week or more sometimes.

before we had our son, dw and i used to go out to a restaurant about 2 or 3 times a week for dinner, and depending on my schedule, i'd often eat lunch out.

since we've had our son, we get takeout from many of those same restaurants, actually more often than before since time is at a premium now.

while i love to cook, i love to eat good food even more. unfortunately, i'm often too busy or too exhausted to even think of cooking, and dw is usually tied up being a great mom all day. i was thinking it might be financially more feasable just to get a private chef a few times a week, but i'm not sure how that works. i'll have to look into it.

anyway, i was wondering how often you eat out or get takeout? 
i would imagine that the chefs and cooks here eat in their places of business often (of which i'm sorta jealous), and people who live in more remote locations wouldn't have that option.


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## wasabi (Dec 13, 2006)

We usually eat out on the week ends when DH and I are out and about. About once a month, I'll order a Pizza Hut pizza, delivered for lunch.


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## kyles (Dec 13, 2006)

I try and keep it to once or twice a month (I'm not counting my restaurant meals at work though!) I find take out food (and a lot of restaurant food) very salty and fatty, and unpalatable.

We've gone a bit crazy of late though, because my new fiance keeps finding new people for us to celebrate with!


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## XeniA (Dec 13, 2006)

We're in the "rarely" category. There are only so many times I want souvlaki, and KFC/McDonalds is really scraping the bottom of the barrel.

Past that, while I sometimes crave the ease and the atmosphere, I'm just too critical of the food to be satisfied dining anywhere that isn't truly superb, and _that's_ usually out of the question money-wise. The mid-range stuff just makes me sick that I've spent the money for what is always mediocre food. However, because we so seldom eat out, we can justify splurging on the occasional filet or huge, fresh prawns. Thank heavens both my husband and I find cooking after a long day in the office a nice way to unwind.

I DO miss a good breakfast/brunch out, though, and also breakfast foods available 'round the clock. If those options were available here we might be going more often!


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## boufa06 (Dec 13, 2006)

DH prefers homecooked food so we do not dine out often except when he wants me to take a break from the kitchen and when we celebrate special occasions like namedays, birthdays, anniversary etc.  Also when we entertain.  I do however, have a penchant for gyros so once in a while I will patronise my favourite haunt for a takeout.


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## YT2095 (Dec 13, 2006)

we don`t eat out anymore since my daughter was born, but that`s only a temp thing until she`s old enough to come with us, but we still have the occasional Take-Away with Style 

lemme explain, we live right in the middle of town, there are 4 take aways that dont involve crossing a road and 2 others that do require this, all are shouting distance away (the closest is 50 feet away).
we fone the order through AND get it delivered ))


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## Chopstix (Dec 13, 2006)

We usually eat out Sunday night when our housekeeper takes her day off. It happens pretty often that I get invited to join DH and his visiting colleagues for dinner at a nice place. Then DH invites me out on a dinner date about once a month. Other than that, we normally eat at home. DH prefers my homecooked food but he'll never turn down an invitation to a really good restaurant.


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## Robo410 (Dec 13, 2006)

school feeds me at least once a day, sometimes more depending on duty.  Eat out at a restaraunt, maybe once every 10 days or so.


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## goboenomo (Dec 13, 2006)

More than once a week for me.
I had fast food only once this week. But it's still early in the week.

Would you count ordering chicken strips during my break at work fast food?
I work at a sit down restaurant called Montanas.


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## Barb L. (Dec 13, 2006)

Now that we are retired, and watch our funds, we rarely go out to eat.  We do order pizzas 3-4 times a month.  I enjoy cooking so doesn't bother me at all.  I do go out on Monday's for wings, with my friends.


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## Half Baked (Dec 13, 2006)

Ayrton said:
			
		

> Past that, while I sometimes crave the ease and the atmosphere, *I'm just too critical of the food to be satisfied dining anywhere that isn't truly superb*, and _that's_ usually out of the question money-wise. The mid-range stuff just makes me sick that I've spent the money for what is always mediocre food. However, because we so seldom eat out, we can justify splurging on the occasional filet or huge, fresh prawns.


 
I feel exactly the same way.  I don't want to go out to dinner unless it is a magnificent restaurant and we just can't afford that very often.  We definately go out for our birthdays, a special dinner around Christmas and maybe one other time a year.

I am most always disappointed when we go out to the 'mediocre' places so I'd rather go buy a couple of lobsters and have a wonderful dinner at home.


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## sparrowgrass (Dec 13, 2006)

I rarely eat out, delivery is non-existent in this little town, and take out just seems to take longer than cooking something at home.  I don't even go out for lunch--I come home most days.

There are several reasons why I don't eat out.  I don't like to spend the money for mediocre food.  I try to eat healthy foods, and that is hard to stick by sometimes when eating out. I live alone, and  I don't much like to go into the sit-down restaurants by myself.

Also, my choices are limited here--a McDonalds, a Sonic (gag), Subway, gas station pizza, a couple of hometown diner places where everything tastes like cigarette smoke, a good home cooking place, and a REALLY, really good BBQ place.  I love the last two, but seem to save those for when I have company.


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## Jules582 (Dec 13, 2006)

My boyfriend and I try to go out to eat at least 1 night out of the weekend. I do love to cook though, so sometimes I just whip something up. We eat take out for lunch on most weekends too, something simple like subway or d'angelo's. We are both pretty health concious so we try to keep ordering out to a minimum.


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## middie (Dec 13, 2006)

About once a week here. Not always fast food.


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## Alix (Dec 13, 2006)

Count us into the "rarely" category because we like the meal to be truly memorable. If I'm going to spend money on it, it darned well better be something I can't or won't produce at home. We go on special occasions usually and the occasional pizza when I'm too bagged to cook. 

BT, you're pretty darned nice to your wife. In my handbook, staying home with the kiddos meant producing meals too. When they were little that sometimes meant chicken nuggets though. LOL. Thats pretty easy to do even when you have to scrape the playdoh off the table before setting it.


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## VeraBlue (Dec 13, 2006)

I prefer to cook, I enjoy the romance of it.  Unfortunately, I don't get the opportunity to cook every day, either.  

Usually, I'll bring something in for a friday night, or one other week night for my son and I.  

I love going for a nice dinner, but it's hard to justify a 200 dollar meal when one is saving for a vacation.  

I can say that between tomorrow morning and Friday evening, all meals will be eaten out.  Yay for me!!


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## urmaniac13 (Dec 13, 2006)

Apart from grabbing a piece of pastry or a slice of pizza on the run while we are out and about, we very, very seldom dine out or use takeaways either.  Partly because I can accomodate the time to prepare a decent, if not extravagant mind you, meal most of the time, even if not, there are always something around in the house for a short cut cooking.  Probably our grocery bill is bigger than average, we are always buying some curious things to try, but since we hardly ever eat in a restaurant, it should more than even things out, and I am happy with this way.  Anyway that's a good sign that Cris is happy with my cooking, he loves to eat and if he weren't happy, he would be insisting to eat elsewhere! 

Having said that, I do really enjoy a good Indian fare in a good restaurant when it happens, where only the Indian chefs can get it just right....


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## buckytom (Dec 14, 2006)

thanks alix, but i should mention that dw _does_ cook for our boy, and she always offers to make more if i should want some. 

in fact, since he was so sick his first year and a half, dw is obsessed with getting him to eat well. she makes 6 or 7 things for him to eat most nights, hoping he'll eat enough of some of them. it's usually chicken nuggets, fish sticks, hot dogs, kielbasi, mac and cheese, pasta with cottage cheese   or alio olio, frozen pizza, and other simple foods, but how often can you eat them, or would want to if you're not a kid. it's the same foods for lunch too, 'cause that's all he'll eat.

i guess i'm a bit of a foodie snob, preferring to go into debt ordering out from a restaurant a lot rather than just eating what she made.  

i'm not one of those guys to complain, tho. she's already cooked something, so if i don't want it, i'll either cook or go get dinner for us. she doesn't complain in return, because she loves good food almost as much as me.

btw, we rarely get fast food, like wendy's or kfc. maybe only a coupla times a year. i don't consider pizza fast food, since we get it often with mussels fra diavolo, antipasti, eggplant rolatini, and other things from one of the dozens of mom and pop places around us.


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## mugsy27 (Dec 14, 2006)

im in the once a week category.  breakfast and dinner are ALWAYS homemade..and lunch is usualy as well.  but sometimes i dont have time to make it (the night b4) so i go accross the street to the deli and try and keep is somewhat healthy!


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## Uncle Bob (Dec 14, 2006)

I checked once a month...but thats probably a stretch...
Never ever fast food! 
The older we have gotten I suppose we have become food snobs! Or is it that our taste change as we get older? Or maybe some of these "fine dining" resturants are living off their reputations... do you ever find yourself saying "they are not as good as they used to be" We live only 150 miles from New Orleans... Pre-Katrina we used to go down for a week-end here and there, and we were becoming less impressed with each visit. We have not been back Post-Katrina.


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## thumpershere2 (Dec 14, 2006)

Rarely and never fast food (yuk)  The thought of eating out really doesn't appeal to me at all.At least at home I know who does what with my food.


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## cjs (Dec 14, 2006)

Hmmmm, I'm really surprised at how many eat out so often! Before retiring, I'd grab something from the hotel's kitchen, and I cooked mostly simple meals that would keep for my husband to have good food to come home to. Days off, I'd cook 'good' stuff.

Now that we're retiring, I'm having fun making all the dishes I didn't have time for before. So if we go out to dinner once a  month, the food industry in town is lucky...don't bother going to fast foods, unless the hot dog smells at Costco get to us as we're passing...


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## Alix (Dec 14, 2006)

BT, didn't mean to imply your DW was slacking, I meant that YOU are a wonderful hubby for thinking of the personal chef etc. Sorry if that didn't come across. And I hear you on the kid food thing. My youngest would eat plain noodles with "stinky cheese" for every meal if I let her. Ugh.


> i guess i'm a bit of a foodie snob, preferring to go into debt ordering out from a restaurant a lot rather than just eating what she made.


I rather like this statement. In reading many of your posts, its clear that cooking is a joy for you and your recipes reflect wonderful taste. Now you just have to train that youngster of yours to follow along. So that your DW can have a gourmet meal prepped for when you get home. Danged picky kids!


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## Andy M. (Dec 14, 2006)

I find it interesting that serveral of you have said you only want to go out for fine dining. 

We enjoy that as well, but also like the treat of going to a local restaurant that offers everything from subs and pizza to Greek and Italian dishes, fish, fried chicken, etc. For about $30 (if we don't go crazy) two of us get something different from what we usually cook and a break from the routine.


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## callie (Dec 14, 2006)

I checked rarely/never.  We are in a very remote area.  No fast food unless you count the hotdogs cooked on the rotating hotdog cooker at the local gas station.  Mr. callie is a great cook and I'm decent enough, too.  Our town is so small, we know everyone.  That's not always a good thing when we realize who is cooking/prepping/serving food in the few restaurants here.  Does that make us snobs?


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## sattie (Dec 14, 2006)

I love to cook, but by the same token, I love going out to eat.  We usually go at least once a week to our favorite resturaunt.  We usually don't do fastfood type joints.  When I show up to work... it is usually sushi for me since hubby is opposed to Japanese fair.


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## ChefJune (Dec 14, 2006)

I don't consider the two in the same category.  I eat out often. I live in New York, and there are so many fantastic places to try, I could never get to them all!  I almost NEVER get take out -- maybe three times a year? So there is no answer in your poll for me.


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## Half Baked (Dec 14, 2006)

Wish I was your roommate, June!!!!


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## shpj4 (Dec 14, 2006)

I usually eat out at least 3 times a week and I never get take out.  I order dinner in whenever I am not in the mood to cook.


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## -DEADLY SUSHI- (Dec 14, 2006)

I work in a typical office. Logically with my money problem I SHOULD make lunch and bring it to work. 
I dont.   I work in an area that has everything! From VERRRRY good Indian to mexican to BBQ to italian and VERY good polish and there are SIX places in a 2 mile radius for sushi!!!   I can write a small book on the places around where I work! Its the best place for food I can imagine. One day, great sushi. THe next, angus burger. The next all you can eat for $5 with WONDERFUL italian! Then theres the Chinese lunch for $5.... and its out of this world. Indian all you eat buffet with lamb! Pizza and hotdog joints! Burritos the size of you head for $5.
Its almost impossible for me NOT to go out every day and experience these places. But it hurts the wallet.


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## Barbara L (Dec 14, 2006)

For awhile we were eating out (mostly fast food) too much because of convenience (out doing something or got home late from work), but we have gone back to a lot more home cooking.  James loves my cooking (okay, so do I!) and it is so much cheaper.  But Sunday after church we definitely eat out most of the time.  We are hungry when we get out and we do like to eat out.  Often on payday we will go out (Taco Bell or other fast food if we don't have much money or a nice Mexican restaurant or other sit-down place), but not so much anymore.  Lately I think I could make enchiladas 3 times a week!  

 Barbara


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## SierraCook (Dec 15, 2006)

I'd rather cook at home, but sometimes life and work just gets in the way.  In the summer when my work is the most demanding I will eat out 3-4 times a month.  When I go on fire assignments I eat out everyday for two weeks!!  By the end of two weeks I am sick and bored with eating out.  

During the winter when my work slows down, I spend more time cooking good meals at home.  I really like to make soups, chili, stews, and casseroles.  If I have company visiting we will go to a favorite restaurant.  

When I go shopping in Reno, NV I always get Asian takeout because it is my favorite and there are not any Asian restaurants where I live.  Plus by the time I shop all day, I am too tired to cook dinner.


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## corazon (Dec 15, 2006)

I like eating out but we don't do it all that often.  2 roudy kids makes it difficult to really enjoy.

We eat lunch out once or twice a week.  Usually something quick and kid friendly.  When all of us go into town for the day, we can't just run home to eat, so we grab something.  In the summer, dh likes to pack a picnic and eat it at the park.

Very very rarely do we get take out.


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## auntdot (Dec 15, 2006)

It varies, maybe between lunch and dinner to to three times a month, at most.

Recently an Irish pub, a decent regular Italian place (pasta and some fancier dishes), and a tapas place opened up in our area (used to be eleven years ago when we moved in, the whole town only had five or six restaurants, all boring). So we have enjoyed the occasion and have been going out a bit more.

We don't have fancy places around here, which we would like, and usually don't want to drive 50 or 60 miles for a dinner, no matter how elegant.

Those we have to save for vacation.

Fortunately we both like cooking so eating at home is not a problem.

We go out for the relaxation more than for the food, we could do most of that at home.


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## mudbug (Dec 15, 2006)

Irish pub, auntdot?  in our area?  you must tell all!


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## Dove (Dec 16, 2006)

If you count Costco samples then weather permitting several times a week. the Demo workers are a great support group for me. Other than that only when one of my group of friends have a birthday. Trying to drop a few pounds so I usually grab something here..like tonight I had popcorn for dinner...LOL
Dove


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## bethzaring (Dec 16, 2006)

I love to cook and I love to eat out.  But the offerings are so pitiful where we live, we do not eat out hardly ever.  If I eat out, I want above average food,  and that is not available out here in the boonies.


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## ironchef (Dec 16, 2006)

If it's a work day, I'll eat twice at work from the restaurants. If I'm off, I'll probably eat out at least once. So in a typical 7 day week, I'll eat out around 12-14 times.


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## Little Miss J (Dec 16, 2006)

No real decent place to eat out where I live.  I live in a small town and the quality of most of the eating places is a bit hit and miss (more miss than hit unfortunately).  So I usually only eat out or get take out if I am not at home.


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