With the economy in the toilet we’ve been doing our part to make it worse by eating at home almost exclusively. We’ve actually noticed a reduction in our food spending and we’ve been eating some really good quality meals at the same time. It’s no secret that I LOVE Costco. The meat there is very good quality. I’ve never been disappointed with a cut of meat from there. We have been eating a lot of tri-tip steaks from there at $3.49 a pound. The meat is tender and is as tasty as any NY steak I’ve ever had. We can have a nice steak meal along with garlic mashed potatoes and fresh vegetables for less than $7 total.
When we are really feeling fat in the wallet, we like to buy the filet mignon cut of meat at Costco. I was absolutely dumbfounded to see they were selling it at $8.99 a pound when I was there last week. A pack of 4 nice steaks is about $20. My wife and I can each have an incredible steak that you can literally cut with a butter knife, potatoes or rice, and fresh vegetables for less than $13 total. We would pay well over $60 for the same kind of meal in a restaurant. Add a nice bottle of wine and we are still eating for 50% less than just a meal, without wine, in a restaurant.
What are you treating yourself with these days?
We’re treating ourselves to grass fed beef from a local farm. We’ve also enjoyed bison & venison burgers for our superbowl part. The bison from a local farm the venison thanks to my dad’s hunting prowess.
We’re more local eaters so we’ve also been enjoying all of our preserved veggies & fruits from our gardens and other local gardens. Delicious!
It’s a great way to save money, and it’s healthier as well!
My husband and I received a gift card for a “make your dinner” place (where they have all the ingredients and you just assemble the meal). They were incredible….we had never done them before because we thought they were expensive. Our gift card was $84 and we made 4 family size meals or 8 two person meals. When we broke down the cost per meal per person, and compared it to eating out, it was a lot cheaper. Of course, we can make the meals cheaper from scratch, but we are using them as substitutes for going out to dinner, similar to what you are doing with Costco. We were so impressed we immediately booked another session.
My treat is really good salad dressing. It’s my grocery vice. It livens up the meat and veggies I get on sale :)