Eating out- Is it really worth it.
- Thread starter MPF9
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Zorro
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We use the Pataks Curry Kits and also the similar Spice Tailor ones.
It's honestly dead simple - you empty the spices pack into a pan and sizzle them in a tablespoon of hot oil for 20secs, then add the thick paste and sizzle for 2 mins, then add the meat or veg and cook for 5 mins and lastly add the curry sauce and simmer the lot for 15 mins.
Job done in 20mins total and it smells and tastes like you have made a curry from scratch
Rusty Blade
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We eat out only on rare occasions. We find that restaurant food is pricey and not as good as we can cook at home. And one of the big downsides of eating in restaurants is loud music. There is nothing worse than going to a quaint Italian restaurant and having loud pop music being played! 
Northam Saint
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Personally I can’t think of anything worse than going out Christmas Day to eat. We all muck in, and now the kids are older they help clear up etc. great to sit around our table, all have a drink and not worry about who is driving, and everything to everyone’s taste. We have loads of drink in and again covered more than enough for everyone. As I can’t eat nuts and coconut in any form we don’t have that to worry about too.
Me neither. We're visiting family in the morning then having a roast dinner at home, just the three of us.
Vacumatic
Testy
I have eaten out for Christmas dinner, Last time it was at the Wolsely next to Fortnums I understand why people do it but it was pretty bad, food was ok but other people's children are always bad news to have around.
We strive for this image, board games, a few drinks, good food, people staying over, opening presents with children, making sure that Granny is happy, it's what Jesus would have wanted.
We strive for this image, board games, a few drinks, good food, people staying over, opening presents with children, making sure that Granny is happy, it's what Jesus would have wanted.
Northam Saint
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Reminds me of someone I use to work with. We were discussing what we were doing at the weekend. I said we were going out for lunch with our kids. This was someone who was more than easily a millionaire, posh house, well spoken etc etc. He was most surprised as he said he wouldn’t take his son out as he couldn’t behave himself in a restaurant. Our kids have always been fine in that setting, we were never over dominating with them they just knew what was expected in that setting. Had many a complement over the years, including a long haul flight of their behaviour. We would hated for them to of had an impact on others.
Christmas in our house is just us, our son (21) and our daughter (16) and the two mutts. We do sit around the table, eat drink and be merry, even the mutts get involved and have a small dog version of a Christmas roast.
The cost of eating in a restaurant has become so ridiculous that we do it infrequently and prefer to order take way instead. Prices here in Canada together with grossly inflated tips have reached a point where we feel cheated no matter how good the food is. We confine ordering take away to foods we don’t or can’t prepare at home such as sushi and other Japanese foods, seafood pasta and other “exotic” seafood, shawarma, Chinese food, Thai food and fish & chips of course. We’ve found that one of positivesof our COVID-19 lockdown is that the quality of take away food has improved. One of the dishes my wife and I can’t cooking well is delicate fish, but it doesn’t do well as a take away either, unfortunately. As for curry, we use Patak’s sauces and pastes to make very satisfying curries at home; we really like their Madras sauce. Nonetheless, nothing can beat a meal at a quality Indian restaurant; just walking through the door and being greeted by the smell of curry and other dishes cooking puts my saliva glands is overdrive.
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The only time we’ve had Christmas dinner in a restaurant was when we lived in Houston. All our children and other family
were in Canada, England or Scotland, so it was just my wife and me most Christmases. We’d go to the Omni Hotel in downtown Houston were they had the most extraordinary menu both buffet and set meal, which you could mix and match and a fixed price. The food quality was very high, but the place was packed with families. Rather sad we thought that so many families chose to eat out on Christmas Day. Mind you, most of our neighbours in Houston ate out most weekdays and on weekends, rarely cooking at home. Back in those days though, eating out was relatively inexpensive and there was a mind blowing array of restaurants, diners and dives where we lived.
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Vacumatic
Testy
Picking up on your inexpensive meal point. There was a restaurant near me that was very busy after 8pm, very quiet before then, they started doing a set meal at a a set price, for example cottage pie, vegetables followed by Apple pie and custard all for £7.50, all freshly prepared by a chef, no booking, turn up sit down and go within the hour. It was very popular with people leaving work and not wanting to cook for themselves.
I had a house in Englewood in Florida, the local diner did something similar, soup or salad as a starter followed by home made meat loaf and mashed potato all for $10, loved it. Cut down choices but also cut down prices.
I had a house in Englewood in Florida, the local diner did something similar, soup or salad as a starter followed by home made meat loaf and mashed potato all for $10, loved it. Cut down choices but also cut down prices.
hotmetal
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There is no answer as to whether it is worth it because everyone is different. I basically live to eat, so much do I enjoy eating, and indeed quality over quantity. I am also able to make food at home as good as eating out, (restaurant and cuisine dependent!)
For me I absolutely love eating out, almost never get takeaway, I'll either save my pennies and cook at home or go for the full experience. I can appreciate anything from Pizza Express to Rick Stein, although my budget nowadays is firmly towards the PX end. To be honest I can extract an awful lot of pleasure from a decent fry-up in a transport café (truckstop) if the food and coffee is good and the staff up for banter. Having someone cook for you is a privilege for me and I don't mind paying, so long as the food and service is good. O just do it less now than when things were better, or as often but more low end. Still enjoy it. If anyone asks what I want for birthday the answer is always a meal out. Not bothered about gifts I just want to go for meals with friends.
Admittedly I have the advantage of living within reasonable distance from London where there is probably a wider variety of different cuisines to try than most places.
For me I absolutely love eating out, almost never get takeaway, I'll either save my pennies and cook at home or go for the full experience. I can appreciate anything from Pizza Express to Rick Stein, although my budget nowadays is firmly towards the PX end. To be honest I can extract an awful lot of pleasure from a decent fry-up in a transport café (truckstop) if the food and coffee is good and the staff up for banter. Having someone cook for you is a privilege for me and I don't mind paying, so long as the food and service is good. O just do it less now than when things were better, or as often but more low end. Still enjoy it. If anyone asks what I want for birthday the answer is always a meal out. Not bothered about gifts I just want to go for meals with friends.
Admittedly I have the advantage of living within reasonable distance from London where there is probably a wider variety of different cuisines to try than most places.
Northam Saint
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One of my students is working Christmas Day, 16 years old and getting £19 an hour !