It's time to start digging up those Squirrelled Nuts!!!!

Sea_Shell

Lifematters said:

For me, eating out is more than just a treat but a way to contribute to the local economy, support jobs and the hospitality industry. Wish I could do it more! 

Good luck with that.  You might be doing it single handedly soon!!  Unless all the patrons of your local haunts do the same.

But with the cost of business energy sky rocketing, it's soon not going to be worth them opening.

They can't increase prices to match increased costs.

It's going to get messy ☹️

Albermarle

jimpwarsop said:

zagfles said:

If we just want good food, there's an excellent takeaway-with-tables type place not too far from us, where we can eat excellent curries/kebabs for about £5 each with a drink (non alcoholic), the surroundings/ambiance isn't like a restaurant, it's a busy takeaway, but the food is excellent.

I suspect a lot of people dream of that sort of place, even the dump of a town I live in cant supply such value.

Where I live ( Down South but not particularly posh) if you want anything but the basic small donner, then two decent kebabs would set you back getting on for £25. I suspect Zagfles is frequenting the  parts of big Northern/Midlands Cities, where there is a  high immigrant community and a lot of food outlets,  like in parts of Leicester or Manchester. In these areas you can get some very good value on food like kebabs and curries.

jennystarpepper

I'm with @Sea_Shell, I'd rather save my money and have a longer holiday... this enables us to have nearly 4 weeks away in December.

It's interesting to see some of the prices, it's under a tenner for Haddock & chips, sausage & chips and 1 peas at my local chippy.  We have had one pub lunch this year under £20. I will add take away food is probably 4 times a year max.

Whatever you do with you money, as long as you are happy with your choice and feel you got value for money.

zagfles

Albermarle said:

jimpwarsop said:

zagfles said:

If we just want good food, there's an excellent takeaway-with-tables type place not too far from us, where we can eat excellent curries/kebabs for about £5 each with a drink (non alcoholic), the surroundings/ambiance isn't like a restaurant, it's a busy takeaway, but the food is excellent.

I suspect a lot of people dream of that sort of place, even the dump of a town I live in cant supply such value.

Where I live ( Down South but not particularly posh) if you want anything but the basic small donner, then two decent kebabs would set you back getting on for £25. I suspect Zagfles is frequenting the  parts of big Northern/Midlands Cities, where there is a  high immigrant community and a lot of food outlets,  like in parts of Leicester or Manchester. In these areas you can get some very good value on food like kebabs and curries.

Yup, the one I was talking about is in Longsight, Manchester. There are loads there so loads of competition and they're all excellent (or at least the ones I've tried are). Been eating there for decades, the chicken tikka kebabs are delicious, filling, reasonably healthly (char grilled chicken with loads of salad), the most unhealthy part is the naan bread it's wrapped in. Have one for lunch and I don't need dinner! For under £5. 

It's not that local to me now but it's worth the trip, there are some more local places that do similar but not as good and a lot more expensive.

Albermarle

Yup, the one I was talking about is in Longsight, Manchester. It's not that local to me now but it's worth the trip

I suppose you just have to hope your car doesn't get nicked, whilst you are enjoying your £5 kebab  

zagfles

Stubod said:

..we recently "found" Wetherspoons....not exactly haute quisine, but excellent value for money and beer cheaper than you can buy in Aldi. Recently had a meal for 2 + drinks for about the same as we brought 2 coffees in out local coffee shop.....  

They're usually good, but they do vary, especially in the beer quality. But that's no different to other places. The food is usually more basic than other pubs but usually good and a lot cheaper. Meals often include a "free" drink. Took my mum to one recently, bill came to around £30 for 3 of us (think it was mains with free drink and coffees). This was in the south west. 

zagfles

Albermarle said:

Yup, the one I was talking about is in Longsight, Manchester. It's not that local to me now but it's worth the trip

I suppose you just have to hope your car doesn't get nicked, whilst you are enjoying your £5 kebab  

The only time in the Manchester area I had an issue like that was when parked in Hale and someone broke into my car. That's supposed to be a posh area Never had a problem is the supposedly rough areas!

zagfles

MallyGirl said:

Our local chippy is £11.95 for haddock and chips for one.
We rarely have F&C as I'd rather have a takeaway curry for a similar price. Our local Indian is BYOB which keeps the cost down if we want to eat out and we always bring home enough leftovers for a second meal just making more rice to pad it out.
If we eat out, other than Indian, then I would expect to pay somewhat more than £60 per head but that is the joy of living in the Thames Valley.

More than £60 per head???

We had a meal in Reading a couple of weeks ago (you can't get more Thames Valley than Reading!), been trying to find it online, think it was this place, the menu looks right  https://www.thefishermanscottagereading.co.uk

Group of 6 of us, we had a few starters to share and a main course, the food bill came to just over £100 for 6 of us! I remember because the person paying had forgotten their PIN, they were so used to just tapping So about £17 per head. It was good as well. We got drinks separately. Suspect it's mainly drink which inflates restaurant bills.

cfw1994

Albermarle said:

Yup, the one I was talking about is in Longsight, Manchester. It's not that local to me now but it's worth the trip

I suppose you just have to hope your car doesn't get nicked, whilst you are enjoying your £5 kebab  

Ah yes….DD had her Fiesta stolen from Parrs Wood car park after living there for only a few weeks…..recovered completely knackered 3 weeks later, with 2k miles on it, stinking of weed (used for ‘county lines’).  

Meant her year in Manchester was somewhat soured 🙄
Still, onto Edinburgh soon: a lovely City!

We enjoy eating out and takeaways…..& hope to continue to try to help keep those places in business.  Time will tell how much belt tightening we undertake, of course.
One way to also lower costs (generally, at home as well as dining out) is to go veggie….our offspring chose to many years ago, and are decent cooks too.  We try to join in when we can 😎

Wetherspoons are often in very historical and interesting buildings….& the beer is reasonably priced 🍻. Does, however, mean it sometimes attracts some….interesting customers 🤪

pensionpawn

Sea_Shell said:

Ganga said:

Albermarle said:

jimpwarsop said:

Sea_Shell said:

I can't get excited about eating out regularly.  It doesn't float my boat.

Thing is, if I have a disappointing meal, I feel the money was a waste, and I would rather be disappointed at home for £6, than disappointed out for £60.

Even worse when the cheapest bottle of wine is 4 X what you pay for it in Tesco's 

Has it not always been this case! 
I have been following the later part of this thread and it seems a lot of people do not want to spend their money on eating out but you cannot take it with you and i know it is peoples choice but what is the point of having an over average pension pot and not getting any enjoyment from it.

We all "enjoy" different things.

Sometimes the enjoyment is purely not having to go to work!😉

Personally, I'd rather have an extra night of holiday accommodation...than a regular "local" meal out.

I have to agree with Ganga as I know / have read of so many people who have worked so hard and long to amass a significant pension pot / savings and are then reluctant to spend it. You can't take it with you! I have a very well off, and frugal (yes, that's potentially why he's well off) though generous work colleague (we get on very well with each other) who I occasionally tease that money only has value when it moves from point A to point B. I really wish he would spend more on himself and his family. I also have to agree with Sea Shell in that the main enjoyment (for us) of a good pension pot is just not having to go to work again. For me and Mrs PP just doing what we always have done, without having to go to work again is the goal.