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Post by housesparrow on Jul 15, 2009 11:41:03 GMT
According to a man on the radio half an hour ago, the average person eats one in nine meal out. Young men are the most likely to take a meal in a restaurant, older people and women the least likely.
One in nine sounds a lot, though I suppose if you made a habit of nipping to the cafe for a burger and chips at work this would soon mount up.
So how often do you eat out, and what sort of restaurant do you tend to choose?
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Post by Patrick on Jul 15, 2009 13:08:29 GMT
If they/he meant the "Main Meal" - as in an evening meal - then I suppose that could mean once every week and a half perhaps? Which wouldn't be too bad I suppose. Weekly treat sort of thing. After all there are many middle of the road restaurants with midweek deals and even the odd weekend deal too. I wouldn't have thought times were easy for any restaurant at the moment. Unless they're benefiting from people comfort eating their way through the recession?!? We've been unlucky with our favourite restaurants in that they've (the people running them) have always moved on after a few years, to better things. We had a delightful little Chinese restaurant - the only place I've ever been where I/we were always greeted warmly and by name!! and they were lovely friendly people with great senses of humour (read: could put up with my eccentricities). Then we had a good nine months where everything at home was chaos and we didn't get the chance to go down there at all. Result? On the day we did a strange man answered the phone to take the booking and something seemed wrong. When we got there it was chilly, the old coal fire wasn't burning and there was no gentle music playing. The food turned up late and without it's plate warmers. We didn't stay for pudding. They were painting a new name on the place that weekend  Our latest favourite was an Italian "Il Bistro Morini" - and yes, it was named after the motorbike! Once again - lovely people, always with the most pleasant serving staff and the most geeeeorgous range of fish dishes you've ever known. I have never tasted fish as soft and as beautifully textured, and as for the puddings! Phwoooaaar! It was one of those meals there where you thought that the main course was just the right size and so pudding wouldn't be too much of a challenge, after which you just had to follow with one of their fantastic liqueur coffees and would invariably stagger home saying - "Now I'm full Ohhhhhh!!! Now I'm full!" with a silly grin on our faces. Last year or so they apparently upped and offed to New York! |
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Post by everso on Jul 15, 2009 14:02:39 GMT
I'd say that's about right for us. We have quite a few nice restaurants in and around Chelmsford - the sort that are fairly dear for a la carte but do deals on evenings Monday to Thursday. We usually make it on Tuesdays or Thursdays when I've had a heavy day at the coal face looking after the twins. One to be recommended is in the village of Writtle, just outside Chelmsford, called The Blue Bridge Bar and Restaurant. Quite expensive (although not prohibitive) for the a la carte menu but they do 3 courses for £19.95 on Monday to Thursday and the food is very very good. The waiters are quite handsome  and extremely friendly. |
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Post by housesparrow on Jul 16, 2009 6:35:51 GMT
Chinese food is great, but best enjoyed in a big group, so everyone can sample lots of different dishes.
We have quite a few small and inexpensive Italian restaurants in our little town and they are very popular. But I have decided that pasta is rather a dull dish because every mouthful tastes the same!
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Post by aubrey on Jul 16, 2009 7:49:05 GMT
Damn' right! I don't know how Italians get away with it.
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Post by trubble on Jul 16, 2009 8:01:18 GMT
I avoid pasta because I can make it at home.
Italian restaurants are lovely though because they are nearly always so relaxed and comparitively inexpensive. If you go for the company and the outing more than the food (and I usually do that), they are perfect.
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Post by trubble on Jul 16, 2009 8:04:08 GMT
We have a local Italian place run by a real Italian with real italian waiters and it trades almost exclusively on the waiters' skills at flirting and flattery.
It annoys me. They are all fabulous looking, there are usually no waitresses, the flirting is so overt and charming that you can hardly speak with blushing when they talk to you and the food is usually below par. The place is always full.
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Post by bonbonlarue on Jul 19, 2009 11:46:18 GMT
We have a local Italian place run by a real Italian with real italian waiters and it trades almost exclusively on the waiters' skills at flirting and flattery. It annoys me. They are all fabulous looking, there are usually no waitresses, the flirting is so overt and charming that you can hardly speak with blushing when they talk to you and the food is usually below par. The place is always full. Book me a table for 1 please.. |
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Post by trubble on Jul 19, 2009 16:35:12 GMT
We have a local Italian place run by a real Italian with real italian waiters and it trades almost exclusively on the waiters' skills at flirting and flattery. It annoys me. They are all fabulous looking, there are usually no waitresses, the flirting is so overt and charming that you can hardly speak with blushing when they talk to you and the food is usually below par. The place is always full. Book me a table for 1 please.. ;D Okay. But eat before you go. |
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Post by everso on Jul 19, 2009 21:42:24 GMT
We have a local Italian place run by a real Italian with real italian waiters and it trades almost exclusively on the waiters' skills at flirting and flattery. It annoys me. They are all fabulous looking, there are usually no waitresses, the flirting is so overt and charming that you can hardly speak with blushing when they talk to you and the food is usually below par. The place is always full. Book me a table for 1 please.. You can forgive a restaurant anything if the waiter is handsome. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 19, 2009 22:04:41 GMT
..........or if the waitress shows her tits  |
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Post by everso on Jul 19, 2009 22:05:54 GMT
..........or if the waitress shows her tits Language Timothy! |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 19, 2009 22:16:46 GMT
..........or if the waitress shows her tits Language Timothy! ......... or if the waitress shows her tits ...... if the waitress displays her decolletage |
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Post by everso on Jul 19, 2009 22:25:29 GMT
......... or if the waitress shows her tits ...... if the waitress displays her decolletage ;D |
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Post by riotgrrl on Jul 26, 2009 9:23:08 GMT
Does a sandwich from Greggs for lunch count as 'eating out' ?
Does takeaway count as 'eating out'?
Because if so, I have a very high total. And if not, then it's probably between 0 - 3 times a week. I do a lot of lunches with friends, as everyone is too busy to catch up in the evenings after work. A nice long lunch is just about the right amount of time for a chat.
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Post by housesparrow on Jul 26, 2009 9:52:54 GMT
It was something I heard on the radio, and I think they were talking about eating in cafes and restaurants, not take-away meals. So if you eat your sandwich in Greggs* it counts; indeed there was some discussion about how cafes were probably the most successful way to go for someone wanting to set up in the restaurant business right now.
*The chain hasn't filtered to this corner of the country so I'm not sure if there is a seating area in some of their bakeries.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2009 17:57:35 GMT
i dont know any greggs that do seating. love eating out thou |
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Post by artistlily on Jul 27, 2009 9:38:43 GMT
I went out for lunch with my mate. She is a biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig girl, and very flirtatious. It was Italian. The young waiter (prob about 22) was very handsome I suppose (well she thought so). She was so oliaginous it was embarrassing. "oooh" she said breathily "you've been working out!". I don't know how she thought she knew this, as he was only holding a menu and even I can lift one of them. He looked a bit taken aback, she is, er, a couple of decades older than 22, or even a couple of decades and another decade) but I watched her work her usual magic. I don't know how she does it. Within a few minutes he was her bewitched slave. It pissed me off actually. I just wanted me dinner and no carryings on.  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 27, 2009 9:42:04 GMT
when you say 'carryings on'.. are we talking malarkey? in a restaurant?
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Post by artistlily on Jul 27, 2009 9:45:53 GMT
Oh, you know, all that ghastly arch flirting. Sort of Kenneth Williams faces at people. She specialises in it, she can't help it, she oozes sex appeal. Which is fine for her but not for those around us, it is a bit cringe makingy.
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