When eating out, do you choose by taste or price?

[Thegirlwhowent]

I'm curious - if you go out for a meal, do you just choose whatever you fancy, do you take prices into account, or are you totally driven by the cost?

Taste, always otherwise what’s the point in going out just to compromise.

I’ll choose what I want.

Prices in most restaurants usually only vary by a few £££, and I’m not into super-fancy foods which are more expensive.

I’m a (nice) bangers and mash type person.

Taste. I’ll look at the prices particularly if it’s where the bill will be split so I’m not picking something super expensive.

I see your point. I think that for some people it's a big expense which they struggle to afford, so they might be swayed by the prices.

Taste and then look at what I can afford / willing to spend. I like independent cafe/restaurants as you are more likely to get better quality of food, and taste.

Taste.

Taste. I don't eat out often, so I'm going to choose whatever I fancy.

If you are just going to pick the cheapest thing on the menu then I'd stay home. I'm a decent cook and don't want to pay money to eat something I'm not that excited about.

Do you think some people might go for something more expensive if they know the bill will be split, so in effect they'll be subsidized?

Taste. No point in eating out if I can't choose what appeals - although I definitely look at the set menu first.

There are a couple of high end and expensive restaurants I go to because their set menu is a bargain.

But at most restaurants I order what I fancy.

Price first then what I want out of those options.

Because I can cook restaurant quality at home.

Bit of both… I love steak but never have it out as it’s always so overpriced.

A mix depending on why I’m eating out and the food on offer.

I won’t necessarily have the cheapest but if what sounds good is premium price I’m likely to pick something cheaper as I don’t have much spare money for treats.

Both really. Depends how far away from payday it is.

I have whatever I want and so do those that I’m with.

It's more ambience than either cost or taste - what kind of atmosphere do I want? Cosy pub, busy restaurant, sitting outside in the sun? And overall type of cuisine. Other than that, it has to be in budget but I won't choose somewhere where there's nothing I fancy on the menu or where I know the food isn't any good.

A bit of both.

I think the opposite.

Bit of both. I'm not a brilliant cook, but I do enjoy food so I'd be sad to miss out on something that sounds really interesting. But I'm also not made of money and can't necessarily justify and additional £10/20 just because I'm really in a sea bass mood today. Also, there are different reasons for going out and these days, with a small child, I'm usually in child friendly place where the additional cost isn't worth it. Or I'm our with friends and, again, I'm out for reasons other than just the food so I'm not always willing to pay top dollar. It would be lovely if I didn't have to think about the cost though!

I’m not going wild and ordering the market price crab/lobster on a regular basis. But I’ll order what I fancy which I wouldn’t cook at home.

I go for restaurants with prices I think are ok for the occasion/location then pick whatever I fancy eating.

We tend to choose the actual restaurant based on price anyway, so once there I would choose whatever I fancy.

taste, I eat what I fancy, when we eat out we can afford to eat there, so price isn’t a factor , if we couldn’t afford it, we wouldn’t go. I guess if we wanted to keep cost down we’d just have a main, but we do that a lot, simply as that’s all we wish to eat, rather than price,

Taste definitely with food.
With wine I am a bit more careful; I dont want a very expensive bottle of Chablis when they have a perfectly good cheaper Chardonnay on the menu.

Taste is key, but if money is tight then yes, I might choose a cheaper option (that is still something I like) and I'm not exactly flush so I seldom order the most expensive thing, even when it's somethign quite appealingg.

Some people absolutely take the piss when they know the bill is going to be split, but I'd liek to think at the ripe old age of 50 I've ditched people like that from my life. Now, if a friend DID order the most expensive thign on the menu adn we were splitting, I wouldn't blink becaues I know that another time the same friend would hvae a salad and insist on splitting.

A bit of both - if I'm going to have fish I'd choose something that I wouldn't normally cook at home so I'd probably go sea-bass over salmon. But I wouldn't normally choose the expensive 'market price fish surprise' unless I knew how much it was likely to be.

If DH and I are out for a special meal, price is less of a factor than if I'm going out with a group of friends - I wouldn't want to be the one ordering the ribeye steak if they were all having a fishfinger sandwich.