When We Stopped Going Out to Eat: What Really Happened

When I was growing up, going out to eat at a restaurant was a really special occasion. In fact, we hardly even went out to eat for birthdays, but instead it was saved for major events such as when my mother graduated college after returning to school and other such events. As a parent now, we often make an effort to cook meals at home and have traditional family dinners like we had when I was a child. Yet with three kids running every which way for their various after school events, it seemed like we were eating out more and more.

As a result, our budget was really feeling the pinch. My 11 year old had surpassed my full adult height, and she was eating adult meals. Often, the family wanted appetizers and even the occasional dessert, too. It was hard for us to eat out at even casual dining restaurants for under $40 or $50 a pop, and often we spent much more than that. Even driving through a fast food window was often close to $30.

More than that, we were eating on the go, and often eating fairly unhealthy foods. By now, it's widely known that even the salads and healthier options at restaurants are not quite so healthy after all. The foods are often loaded down with fats and extra sodium. The kids still were young enough and active enough to burn the calories off, but my husband and I were definitely showing signs of eating out quite often.

Recently, we realized that we were almost on auto-pilot when it came to going out to eat. Often the service was poor or mediocre at best, the kids got bored sitting at the table, and the food wasn't as good as home-cooking. These factors combined with our health and our wallet resulted in our decision to just stop going out to eat. With some planning, even on the busiest of nights, we can still eat at home. As a result, over the last few weeks we've had some expected and rather unexpected consequences:

Weight Loss. As you might imagine, both my husband and I have lost a few pounds each as a result of cutting out the restaurant food. We haven't exercised more or less than we normally do, so this weight loss is purely based on healthier eating at home.

More Money. Another expected consequence is that we have had extra money in our pockets. To compensate for eating at home more, we have spent a bit more on groceries. Not only are we buying more food, but I've purchased a few extra treats for meals, snacks and desserts so nobody feels deprived. Despite buying more and better food at the grocery store, we are still saving money overall.

More Family Time. When you think about going out to eat as a family, you might think that certainly sitting down at a table in a restaurant is family time. Yet we were all pleasantly surprised to realize that we actually had more time to spend with each other (and found that time more enjoyable), when we prepared meals at home. We started cooking things together again, like baking cookies, grilling out on the back porch, making our own pizzas, and more. It is more active and personal family time than what you can get crowded around a table in a busy restaurant.

More Free Time. Between driving to restaurants, many times waiting for a table, waiting for your food to arrive, then waiting for the check, and driving back home, you can easily spend a good hour and a half or two hours eating out. There are so many meals that you can prepare at home that take under a half hour to make. As a result, we all have a little extra time at home to relax and unwind.

We Don't Miss It. Perhaps the most uniquely unexpected aspect of this is that nobody in our family seems to miss going out to eat. My husband and I had expected the kids to whine about not going out anymore, but they seem to enjoy playing together more at home, hanging out on their own, and spending more time with us, too.

Here are a few other articles written by this author:

How Positive is Your Parenting?

Helping Your Kids Through Fights with Friends

Kids and Friend Drama: When to Step In