Guest Post: Dining on a Dime (or less!)

The below post is compliments of my roomie and fellow frugal mcdougal, Katie Corsetti. Read more on her blogs, The Abbreviated Confessions of a Twenty-Something and Better With Bacon.

Enjoy!

When dining out, it seems that restaurants are just giving away home necessities.  They do this to make sure you are completely satisfied in your choice to go to their location and consume their products. Well, the last time you went to Chick-fil-a and you needed ketchup, didn’t you notice that it was already sitting on the counter behind you along with other dining accoutrements? Here’s my few tips and tricks to save a few bucks on free stuff that we as consumers already pay for because they are built into the  cost of the food


 Any time you get a meal always ask for the accoutrements or take more than you need if they are on the counter / table. For example:

 Ketchup, mayo, and mustard packets

  Jelly and jams packets / tins

  Napkins

Salt and pepper packets

 Any sauce you may enjoy (EX: Polynesian, honey mustard, BBQ etc etc)

 Sugar packets

 Creamers (some may be iffy about this because it is dairy, however, I deem it to be fine because it’s been sitting on the counter for a hot minute anyway, plus its been packaged)

   Mints

   Matches

Think about it.  These dining necessities are already built into the cost of the meal.  The restaurant has to make a profit after everything is all said and done.  So what do they do? They make all the above “free” to you but in reality, they over price the meals to make up the difference. Therefore, since you have already purchased a meal, you can use as much or as little as you need of any of these items.  Restaurants bank on the fact that most people won’t ask for any or only need a few of these, so what’s the difference if you snag a few more?  For things like ketchup and jelly, I bring these to work so that my snack cabinet in my cube is stocked.  Now I don’t have to buy an extra ketchup and jelly, plus I don’t have to keep it in the work fridge (ours gets emptied every Friday. BUMMER!) I’m not saying to take 3 handfuls or ask for 20 packs of anything, but if you snag a few extra, no one will notice or care


Get a meal big enough for you to eat only half…then take the 2^nd half home as left-overs! Now you have two (sometimes even 3!) meals from one AND you’re not over stuffed at the dinner table (bonnnusss) You’ve just turned one $7.79 dinner into three $2.60 meals


  Anytime you eat somewhere that gives you a “starter” or what I like to call “filler” such as bread, corn bread, rolls, or chips and salsa, ask for another basket (its free!! Read: built into the price of your meal already) and take it home with the 2^nd half of your leftovers.  Now you have bread / rolls to add to your next meal or just stick the bread in the food-pro and make them into bread crumbs for frying your chicken in


  If you order a drink like coke, tea or sprite, always get a to-do drink! (sorrryyyy the law says no to-go margaritas or beerskis…. sadtrombone.com ) You’ve already paid for it and most places will give you free refills. To get the most bang for your buck, ask for no-ice and you can take it home to add your own ice.  Ice fills up the cup and you are robbed almost 50% of the drink!! Rude! This also goes for drive-thru drinks too!


Anytime you go to the grocery store or to target, save the bags!! Use them as garbage bags in your bathroom.  Take your lunch to work in them.  Bring food to a friend’s house in them. You can use these bags for everything and anything. They are so handy and now you don’t have to purchase a lunchbox OR trash bags for your small trashcan in your bedroom/bathroom. They were given to you fo’ free!

This last one is not  food related, but, I’ve found that if you go to a hotel and stay more than one night, put the shampoo and conditioners in your bag. The house keeping will replenish it in the morning! Or, you can call down to the front desk and ask for more. These are also built into the cost of the room. Now you have shampoo and conditioners for when you travel to places without housekeeping and you don’t have to buy / bring it. It makes your travel bag lighter and saves you a little extra cash!

Call me frugal. Call me cheap. Call me a penny pincher. Call me whatever you want. All I know is that over time I’ve saved at least $100 on NOT purchasing the above items, but instead using what I already paid for and not feeling guilty about it!  Try it out! 

Tell your bank account you’re welcome in advance, 

Katie

I. Heart. Aldi.

My newest serious relationship is with Aldi, the discount food store. I've put Chipotle on the back burner, it just wasn't working for me anymore. I went on a date with Aldi last week, when I needed some stuff for breakfast and it was right next to my oil change place. At first glance, it's a little weird and I was iffy on it. I knew the stuff was cheap, but I'd never tried it before, so I was leery of the quality. Was this really too good to be true? I decided to have our second date last night, since I ran out of totinos party pizzas, and have been in desperate need of groceries since I moved into the new place about 3 weeks ago. Last night absolutely sealed the deal for me. Nearly everything I bought was close to half the price of what it would have been at Wal-Mart or Kroger (excluding sales or coupons, but still!) I walked out of Aldi with a stocked pantry, for 56 dollars. I bet you I won't have to buy groceries for a month. (True or False?: I immediately called my mom and my roommate to tell them about my savings, and was shrieking like a little girl. TRUE.)

If you're expecting a regular grocery store I have to mention that there are a few small quirks about my new boyfriend Aldi, that if you didn't know at first, might skew your perception of its fantastic-ness. One, you must have a quarter to get a buggy (don't worry, it gives it back at the enddd), two, there are no baskets, and three, there are no shopping bags-- you have to BYO or they have boxes for you at checkout. They also tend not to have obscure items (I couldn't find quick grits or Catalina Dressing)...But if you can get past these quirks and open your mind to the savings, you'll be absolutely amazed.

Items of Note: Ground Turkey- $1.49/lb, Winking Owl Cabernet- $2.62,  English Muffins, 6 count- 99c, Rice Krispie Treats (yes I eat like a kid, don't judge me) 8 count- 99c, Frozen Chicken Pot Pie- 59c ( I have no idea if this will be good, but for 59c, I figured it was worth a try!)

Being the Self-Professed Wino that I am, I have to stop for a second and rave about the Cabernet. It was the smoothest red wine I've had in a whileeeeeeee. I'd say, very comparable to a Kendall Jackson level, but a bit sweeter, which suited my tastes fine. No bite at all, which is super unusual for cheap red wine! Perfect to serve while entertaining, and if you're looking to buy in bulk, a six-bottle case is around 16 dollars! For $2.62, its my Diva on a Dollar Deal of the Week!

Try Aldi, I know you'll love it as much as I do!

** Side Note... After raving about it when I got home, my roommate decided to try Aldi as well for her evening grocery run and had just as much success as I did!

Groceries 101

First of all, I don't get the deal with couponing. Well actually, scratch that. I do get it if you have a large family, or a large residence to store the 24,000 rolls of toilet paper that you bought at a nickel each.
But seeing as how I have neither, I think couponing is actually quite bogus. When that TLC show first came out, I wanted to quit my job and become a professional coup-er. No Lie.The idea of getting a free anything is almost better than sex to me, so needless to say, I was quite interested in the whole process of clipping and saving.
But after some further research, in most cases, it's just cheaper for me to buy the Store Brand. I'm single and I usually only need one of whatever item I'm buying. I get that I'm the exception and that most people operate on a multi-person lifestyle, but not me. I'm ridin solo, and gettin some sweet ass bargains on the way.

So here we go: A list of rules to follow when grocery shopping. In most cases, I get out of the store for 30 bucks or less and this lasts me about 2 weeks. I do eat out intermittently, cause I'm having a very serious love affair with Chipotle, but I figure no one eats EVERY meal at home, right?? (i hope?)

Rule #1. The Kroger Brand Rocks my Socks Off.
ok-- for those of you who don't have Kroger, insert Wal-Mart and move on with your day.
They make almost everything, and it's always just as good, if not better once you doctor it up with some spices.  Now, there is a smallll catch when using the Kroger Brand Specifically. They have 2 Store Brands. The Kroger Value Brand  and the other, more expensive Kroger Brand (I've linked, so if you don't know, you can check out the difference). Here's the catch: the cheaper brand is actually WAAAAAAAAYYY better quality in my experience. Perfect example, Peanut Butter. KVB tastes like Peter Pan, Regular Kroger Brand, tastes like carboard blended with Peanuts.

Rule #2. Know Your Stores
This may be hard for some of you who don't LOVE to shop like I do, but I highly recommend at least getting equipped with the bargain store landscape of your area. The more you frequent stores, the more you know what's cheaper, where. If you always went to Wal-Mart, you might not know, for example, that a bag of 8 frozen chicken breasts is almost a buck fifty cheaper at Aldi than at Roll Back Central. (Btw, the total price at Aldi is $5.84. totaling $1.36 per piece--I dare you to find a cheaper breast anywhere. Breast! hahahahaha- I kill myself!) And Ground Turkey is almost 3 bucks cheaper at Wal-Mart than at Kroger. If you plan your shopping trips and schedule accordingly, you can save some dough by traveling to the best place for the item you're looking for.

Rule #3. Plan Your Meals
Not only is this a money saver, but it's also a great time saver. I love it for just me, but I can only imagine the load it would take off if you had a family with a hectic schedule! I try to do it about two weeks at a time, but you can plan however fits your schedule best. For me it's easy to get 3 meals out of one dish, and if you plan, you don't have to eat them all right in a row, you can mix them up and then your tastebuds aren't sick of spaghetti 24/7. It's also great practice to turn leftovers into other meals. See my other blog for an example. as well as some additional laughs and general rowdiness. cheapcooking.com is a fantastic website that has great recipes, as well as money saving ideas, making Rule #3 an absolute breeze!

Of course I'll keep you updated on my specific fantastic finds, but these 3 rules are ones to live by, and a good foundation to build your bargain empire on. I like to refer to it as an "Empire", mainly because my pantry and my closet are the only "Empire's" I'll probably ever build....

Ballin on a Budget, I have no choice...

Bargaining is in my bones. I'm thinking it's mostly because I grew up in a home where money didn't grow on trees, and basically paying the least amount of money possible for something, wasn't just an added plus, it was a way of life. My mom and dad were Store Brand Warriors. As a kid, we got the huge Bags of Cereal, and it would be like Schmapple Jacks or Captain Bunch or some knock off, but when you stripped away the knockoff name, the quality was just as good. We got Sam's Cola instead of Coke, Arm and Hammer instead of Tide, and the only thing that my mom refused to buy the generic of was Bounty.... oh- and wavy lays potato chips. I grew up knowing that while money was valuable, so was living comfortably. Hats off to my parentals for teaching me this. It’s proven to be the most valuable lesson of my life and a creed that governs my existence.

At the top of my blog, you’ll see I’ve posed the question “Why be broke, when you could be fabulous?!” It's become a personal motto of mine....I’m not gonna lie to ya’ll for one second and say that I don’t love to shop. I do. But I just can’t deal with that sinking feeling when you’ve just bought the most fabulous dress ever, at full price, and then you have no idea how you’re going to afford to put gas in your car to get to the place where you’re supposed to wear said fabulousness, much less buy wine when you get there! I’m not sure about you, but my meager income does not allow me to buy full price, well…. Full price ANYTHING. But I don’t let this stop me for one second. I have found out the cheapest way to buy almost anything while still being fab, chic and classy, and would love it if you’d join me in my growing knowledge of bargaining, re-purposing, shopping, cooking and just generally Ballin on a Budget.  From Groceries to Fashion, Wine to Cable Services, Furniture to Vacationing-- Keep following and I bet you’ll save a bunch, or at the very least swindle some sweet tips and tricks J