Eating out sometimes cheaper than cooking at home

[bjl584]

Is eating out cheaper than cooking? - food prices - MSN Money

[disneysteve]

What a ridiculous article.

Their comparisons are totally false. For example, they are comparing a single person meal with the cost of buying ingredients that would feed multiple people (or be multiple meals for a single person). So a bagged salad (already an expensive way to get salad at home) will feed 3 or 4 people but they're using it as if it would only feed one. A bunch of asparagus might feed 4-6 people. We bought a bunch last week and have had it with several meals already.

It is absolutely not cheaper to eat out no matter how you try to manipulate the numbers.

[disneysteve]

I just checked one of their examples and their prices aren't even right. The seafood alfredo at Olive Garden isn't $15.50. it is $16.25. Add tax and tip and you're up to about $20.65 which is more than their comparison home meal which would serve at least 2 people for that price.

[riverwed070707]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

I just checked one of their examples and their prices aren't even right. The seafood alfredo at Olive Garden isn't $15.50. it is $16.25. Add tax and tip and you're up to about $20.65 which is more than their comparison home meal which would serve at least 2 people for that price.

Darden restaurant prices vary by region.

[MonkeyMama]

By those numbers, it should cost on average $450/month to feed one person dinner. ($15 x 30 days). Um, that's how much I spend to feed 4 people breakfast, lunch and dinner (at home). For an entire month. & I am not of the super crazy frugal/coupon variety. The trick is that we cook most our meals at home. That's about it. We eat meat, we drink wine, and we buy a fair amount of processed foods (generally for breakfast/snacks).

OF course, those restaurant serving portions are ridiculous.

Grocery store rice $2.79? For how much?? Enough to last a month or two? Yeesh. If I threw away everything I didn't eat the second I made it, I suppose that could get pricey.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Originally Posted by MonkeyMama

OF course, those restaurant serving portions are ridiculous.

Yowser! That photo in the story is a good illustration of how big restaurant portions have become.

Our household can eat much more cheaply at home. No question.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by MonkeyMama

OF course, those restaurant serving portions are ridiculous.

That's true but that would actually support the restaurant being a good value since you get two meals for that price, not one.

[jpg7n16]

This one was my favorite:

P.F. Chang's

Meal: beef and broccoli (includes white rice)

Total price: $12.75

Grocery store: flank steak, $9.79; broccoli, $2.99 each; rice, $2.79

Total: $13.04

Winner: P.F. Chang's

Grocery store items were calculated using prices at Fresh Direct. Beef price based on a 7-ounce portion of flank steak.

PF Chang's broccoli beef: 2 serving beef + 1 serving broccoli + 2 servings rice

Flank steak: FreshDirect 7 oz = 2 servings (which by the way, 7oz of flank steak = (7/16)*10.99 = 4.81, not 9.79)
broccoli: FreshDirect 1 bunch makes 3 servings
rice: FreshDirect 2 lbs (uncooked) = 20 servings

I'd have to eat an entire box of rice and barely come out more than PF Changs?? hahaha


And the math nerds of the world swoop in
$4.81 / 2 servings = 2.41 (x 2 servings) = 4.81
2.99 / 3 servings = 1.00
2.79 / 20 servings = .14 (x 2 servings) = 0.28
Total: $6.09


This is what happens when writers come out with finance articles...