Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper.
A friend and I took a week-long road trip last week to a couple of WIsconsin “hotspots.” (Oxymoron?) We stayed a few days in Bayfield, gateway to the Apostle Islands, and a few more days in Fish Creek, Door County. The scenery was stunning, the hiking trails were energizing (if often a little wet), and our weather cooperated. It was a most enjoyable trip.
We counterbalanced the current high gas prices by driving Heidi’s Prius hybrid that gets 57 miles per gallon. We stayed in modest hotels. Neither of us are big souvenir shoppers. But what startled me were the prices we often had to pay for even a modest meal.
First off, I am no epicure. I don’t expect or look for fine gastronomical experiences - in fact if it says “fusion,” I tend to give the food a wide berth. Heidi is vegetarian and I don’t require meat with every meal. I like a glass of wine with my supper, but the house red is just fine.
But even small cafes offered few entrees costing less than $20, not including salad. Just a sandwich and potato chips usually ran $18. Better be prepared to lay out a couple Hamiltons if you wanted a steak, porkchop, or some walleye. A stingy pour of bad Merlot was often $10. Yes, we were in two of Wisconsin’s most touristy areas, but even our local restaurants here in the Twin CIties ‘burbs are plenty expensive. (I am sure there are plenty of younger people reading this who find this hysterically cheap.)
A couple strategies helped us bring down the cost of eating on the road. Breakfasts are a pretty good deal and we ate hearty. (See above.) We often enjoyed light trail lunches of sandwiches and fruit purchased at convenience stores. And we often shared an entree and a salad for supper since most servings are enormous and it’s tough to deal with leftovers while traveling.
I also play a mental game when I see the bill. My income today is ten times what it was when I first graduated from college. So divide the bill by ten and think if the price is still outlandish. Hmmmm, would I have paid seven dollars for that nice meal back in 1972 that I am paying $70 for today? Probably. I also have to remind myself that costs have gone up for restaurateurs. And I hope the higher prices reflect better pay for servers, cooks, and dishwashers, not just more expensive raw materials and bigger profits.
There are few things that give me more pleasure than providing a meal to those I love. I love cooking for family and friends. I like picking up the bill when treating at a restaurant. And I consider someone else buying me dinner or cooking for me to be a most sincere act of affection.
But the sticker shock seems to be getting worse each time the server brings the bill.
Did you find this article useful? Share on Pinterest by pinning this photo!