My dh and I recently sold our house and have the ability to get out of credit card debt and putting 20% down on a new house we're building. We've finally come to the point we've been waiting to get to and kind of start fresh. Well that's find and dandy, but I constantly want to eat out! I've been doing a lot better and make the majority of the meals at home. I usually make all three meals at home, and sometimes I can go for a while without the urge, but then I have those weeks where I just want to eat out everyday ALL day! That is so costly on the pocket book and I want to not even have that urge.

It's just those places have much better food than I make and I don't feel like I'm any sort of good cook, it's cooked, but isn't anything spectacular like I could get at a restaurant. Can someone help me get out of this?!

Gosh, I am not sure what to tell you. We made our changes slowly. Ten years ago, we ate out 2-3 times a week. Now it is maybe twice a month. I do like to cook, and that helps me. When I sit down to a reasonably priced restaurant meal, I try not to remember that I could do as well or better for far less.

Maybe you could plan specifically what meal you will go out for and not do it any other time. Then you know what you are looking forward to and when it is. You don't want to be in the habit of taking off for a meal out just because you are frustrated and tired.

Cathleen

I hear ya! I would much rather eat out most nights. I like cooking, but I am in a rut with the stuff I can make well. Most of it doesn't excite me too much anymore.

I think the one tip I would suggest is to come up with a meal plan at the beginning of the week and making sure you have the ingredients on hand to make what's on your list. Mix it up a bit by including a fun new recipe that excites you - Thai food, seafood, etc. - making it at home even with expensive ingredients is cheaper than eating out.

Also, have some "convenience" meals on hand to avoid temptation. Or, have you ever gone to a make-and-take place where you partially make the stuff and then bring home and freeze it? That's one way of cooking that's easy yet less expensive than restaurants.

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I can definly feel what you are going through. I too love to eat out or even pick up to eat in...I cant tell you how much money we have (or I) have wasted on food this way.

I am trying for the month of may not to eat out at all...including chick fill a. which is hard to do...

I think it is like anything else a habit to break and dont they say it takes about 20 days to break a habit????

I am going to pick up some convience foods at the wholesale clubs like frozen lassagna and all for the nights i really dont want to cook.

Good luck!

I hate to say this - But just dont. You need to make an effort to remember why there is not enough money to be wasted by having someone else cook your food. In time and with practice your food will start tasting better. I would advise going to look at websites with meals similiar to the ones you want to eat and try learn how to cook better.

We consider eating out a treat - it gets done once a month ( that includes take aways) if it gets done at all. Aniverserys and special occasions are the only times we go out to eat a resturant.

We used to eat out a TON- like 4 or 5 times a week plus ordering pizza at least one night a week.... I have really been trying to cut back and found that the reason was that I was too tired or just didn't want to come up with something for dinner or lunch that day. So I made up a weekly menu that included what my DD (17mo old) was going to have for breakfast, 2 snacks, lunch and then what we were having for dinner as a family. That really helped me because I knew ahead what I was cooking. I didn't cut out all eating out. DD and DH loves McDonalds, so once a week I have it on the plan to go to McDonalds or Wendys for lunch. Knowing that I have that day to look forward to has helped tremedously! Good luck.

I think everyone struggles with this. It helps to have a menu plan so you know what you are "supposed" to make that night. Maybe decide you will only eat out once a week and stick to it to.

That is a great idea! I need to buy those when I next go. I'm going to try and wait to go at the end of May, otherwise I will just keep going to Costco and spend way too much money! LOL I will definitely try to buy convenience foods to have. Lasagna sounds good, Chinese orange chicken sounds wonderful, things like that. The problem is I get there, I think of buying it, then I think "oh it's too fattening" or "oh I could make that from scratch" but one, I will eat something twice as fattening if I go to a restaurant and end up spending 3 times what I would have if I would have just gotten it at Costco.

I think next time I will just bite the bullet and get something like that for the times where I don't want to cook.

The best tip I have for you is to try to learn to cook at home what you like to eat out. There is this great Italian resturant up the street from us that we like to go to and I ALWAYS order the same thing. Well I decided that I could try to cook it at home and save us money. On try three I made it so close my dh thought I had gone to them and then brought it home. Now when the urge hits us we make it ourselves and save about $40 a time.

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With time and effort your meals will improve. I know this because we used to eat out alot and when I started staying home with DD we couldn't afford to eat out anymore. I could not cook well, but I tried and practiced and now I feel like I am a good cook. My DH and I would rather eat at home. My 3 people family can't go out to eat for under $30-unless it is McDonald's which is still ~$15-and I can buy several meals and cook them myself for $30. You just have to set your priorities.