I was reading a financial article the other day that suggested that by cutting back on the number of times one dines out for lunch, from five to three days a week, one could save $1560 per year based on a $15 price tag for food, drink, tax and tip.
To which I thought, "$15 for lunch? Whaaaaaaaaaaa?!"
A splurge lunch for me is a trip to the local Indian buffet, where eleven bucks gets you out the door with a full all-you-can-eat meal (with ice water-- I rarely order beverages in restaurants). More commonly I might go to Wendy's, a Chinese or teriyaki place, or perhaps a sandwich shop-- all of which would feed me for under seven dollars. And in our cafeteria I can get a chicken sandwich and fries for $4.05.
Fifteen bucks? Who the heck blows fifteen bucks on lunches twice a week, let alone every day? Granted, my world view is skewed-- I don't own, let alone wear, a power tie. Or a suit, for that matter. So I'm not hob-nobbing with martinis in steak houses and sushi bars. But really, is the average Joe plunking down fifteen bucks when he goes out for lunch? Am I really that far outside the norm here?
The comments are open for your take on the question.
Posted by Peter at April 26, 2005 05:23 PMIt doesn't answer your question exactly, but if your question were: Assuming I knew what the average cost of lunch was, what would happen if I invested it at a 6% growth rate over four years?, then this would answer it:
http://www.dinkytown.net/java/LunchSaver.html
And as a default anyway, it gives $6.50 as the price of eating lunch out. That seems more standard to me.
Posted by: Dug Steen on April 26, 2005 05:54 PMWelcome to New York, where even a salad and an iced tea from the corner deli will cost you ten bucks.
Posted by: Mitchell Harrigan on April 26, 2005 09:48 PMI suspect this may be a bimodal distribution. You are outside the norm for yuppie wankers, marketers, schmoozers, and their ilk.
And let's not even head into discussion of those who buy breakfast every day.
Posted by: Craig Macbride on April 26, 2005 10:13 PMI spend about $3.50 at subway (no drink)
Posted by: Larry on April 27, 2005 05:37 AMIf I actually leave campus, $10-15 isn't out of the question for lunch, but on campus my choices are wendy's, pizza slut or taco hell, all $5 or less.
Posted by: ranger on April 27, 2005 11:41 AMI have to agree with Mitchell... It is widely accepted in NYC that it just costs $20 to leave your apartment. I fondly refer to it as the front door tax.
Although... If you're looking for a good deli sandwich for $5.50 in the West 40's have I got a place for you.
Posted by: Jason on April 27, 2005 12:15 PMIs your cafeteria lunch subsidized by the company? $4 for sandwich and fries sound like a pretty good deal.
I've been saving my lunch money starting the last few months, but before that, here are my typical lunches (incl. 5% MA tax and 15% tip) --
Chinese (non-americanized, ordering real dishes from dinner menu to share family style) - $15
Thai - $10
Brazillian BBQ - $12
Korean BBQ (once every 2 months?) - $20+
Indian - $10
Italian (pasta, not chain, not pizza) - $10
Mexican (not chain, not burrito) - $9
so throw in an occasional shared appetizer, and $15 average is not that far off for me.
These days I'm packing lunch a lot and when not, I am eating Progresso canned soup for about $1 when on sale. :-P :-)
Man, just writing about this makes me want to get a group together and splurge tomorrow or Friday...
Posted by: antkam on April 27, 2005 02:20 PMI (also) have the bad habit of eating lunch out most days. Lunch is generally $8-10 including tax and tip. This is almost always for sit down service. Some days we get cafeteria style which is a bit cheaper, mostly because of no tip. Of course Pittsburgh is known for a low cost of living, so I'm not sure if these numbers are meaningful.
Posted by: Brian L. on April 28, 2005 08:48 PM