Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To hate going out for a meal

262 replies

Bigbouncingbaby · 31/03/2022 19:59

I’ve always thought eating out was expensive…but since covid and not going out at all now I just can’t be bothered to go ! Every time I go out the service is crap or the food is crap . Then I get the bill at the end and think omg could of brought loads in Lidl for that 🤔😳 would much rather eat in but I think my husband just thinks I’m being miserable. Is it just me 🤷‍♀️

OP posts:
RampantIvy · 01/04/2022 23:26

Every time I go out the service is crap or the food is crap

You are eating in the wrong places then. We only choose to eat in places where we know we are going to enjoy the food. The Indian in our village, a handful of local pubs, the Turkish in town, the Thai a few miles away, the Chinese a few miles away. We tend to choose meals that I don’t or can’t make at home, either because I don’t have the right equipment or can’t get the ingredients.

The one thing that takes the joy out of eating out for me is that my appetite isn’t what it was and portion sizes seem to be bigger these days, so I can never finish what I am eating.

Loubylooooo · 01/04/2022 23:26

Both me and DH love food. I am obsessed with food. I read cookbooks for enjoyment, watch just about every cookery show going, love planning our meals, love cooking and love eating. If we eat out and the food is not as good as me or DH can cook then I am disappointed and annoyed that we paid out good money for no good reason

Go to better restaurants (if affordable). Trained chefs should be able to create far superior meals to your cookbook learnt meals. Also ambience. Occasion. These things matter!

RantyAunty · 01/04/2022 23:30

The food and service has been subpar and overpriced so I don't go anymore.

Looking forward to travelling and enjoying better food.

RampantIvy · 01/04/2022 23:35

The food and service has been subpar and overpriced so I don't go anymore.

Everywhere? What sort of places are you eating in?

toomanytwinkies · 02/04/2022 07:33

I love a meal out OP but more and more restaurants seem to just cram the tables in so you’re almost sat on top of the people next to you and I hate it. I especially hate those long benches as then there’s hardly any separation.

NewbieSM · 02/04/2022 07:38

@Kite22

I haven't voted because, if that is how you feel, then that is how you feel, but maybe you need to choose the venue more carefully?

Most people enjoy not having to cook, not having to wash up. I like being able to choose different things - what I would really like rather than always taking into account that if we have A or B then X or Y won't like it, and constantly compromising.

I think you are probably unusual in not enjoying something that most people consider a treat though.

As
Grapewrath · 02/04/2022 08:13

I used to hate it with the kids as it was expensive and they wouldn’t eat it most of the time, not to mention stressful.
I like it with friends though, it’s more expensive but I dont mind if I’m only paying for one meal.

mydogisthebest · 02/04/2022 09:00

@Loubylooooo

Both me and DH love food. I am obsessed with food. I read cookbooks for enjoyment, watch just about every cookery show going, love planning our meals, love cooking and love eating. If we eat out and the food is not as good as me or DH can cook then I am disappointed and annoyed that we paid out good money for no good reason

Go to better restaurants (if affordable). Trained chefs should be able to create far superior meals to your cookbook learnt meals. Also ambience. Occasion. These things matter!

In the past we have been to supposed better restaurants, often ones recommended to us but never really enjoyed the food.

We are vegetarian so many places just offer boring choices. Also as I keep saying, the food is too salty for us.

NeedleNoodle3 · 02/04/2022 09:04

I love to eat out, I normally have 2 restaurant lunches and a dinner out each week. I always seem to get good service.

DoraSpenlow · 02/04/2022 11:45

Going out to eat is my favourite thing. Even if the service is slow and the meal maybe not as good as I could do at home.

I hate cooking. The sheer relentlessness of planning meals, shopping, preparation, cooking, clearing up. Nope.

Just need a break from it all.

My dear Dad, bless him, (would have been 102 this year) was truly stunned when I told him because all women love cooking. Your mother loved it. No Dad, she didn't.

WibbleWobbleWibble · 02/04/2022 13:15

I have eaten out a lot over the years but thankfully most of the cost hasn't come out of my pocket as I'm a "mystery shopper" and get a free meal in exchange for a detailed report. It has been an interesting way to try new things and places, some have been great and some have been terrible and that applies equally to the budget and more high-end places!

I'm very fussy where I spend my own money and usually go for places that serve food I don't cook at home.

mydogisthebest · 02/04/2022 14:05

@DoraSpenlow

Going out to eat is my favourite thing. Even if the service is slow and the meal maybe not as good as I could do at home.

I hate cooking. The sheer relentlessness of planning meals, shopping, preparation, cooking, clearing up. Nope.

Just need a break from it all.

My dear Dad, bless him, (would have been 102 this year) was truly stunned when I told him because all women love cooking. Your mother loved it. No Dad, she didn't.

I totally get that you like eating out because you hate cooking. I would also guess that because you hate it you are likely not that good at it (sorry if I am wrong).

Both me and DH love cooking. We actually sometimes argue over who is going to cook. We do sometimes cook together but our kitchen is small so that is not ideal.

I like the planning - going through recipes, seeing what food we have and making a meal plan for a week (or longer). I don't even mind the clearing away and washing up (we don't have a dishwasher). Not so keen on the shopping.

balalake · 02/04/2022 14:06

I'm with you OP. One of the pleasures I find in working from home is being able to have my own cooked lunch.

Elphame · 02/04/2022 14:16

@Bigbouncingbaby

I’ve always thought eating out was expensive…but since covid and not going out at all now I just can’t be bothered to go ! Every time I go out the service is crap or the food is crap . Then I get the bill at the end and think omg could of brought loads in Lidl for that 🤔😳 would much rather eat in but I think my husband just thinks I’m being miserable. Is it just me 🤷‍♀️
Not a huge fan as I'm often disappointed with the food on offer nowadays and being vegetarian makes my options very limited.

The worst meal I had was in a Michelin starred restaurant - the veggie "option" was a butternut squash risotto which was totally flavourless.

I only go to spend time with friends.

Thumpkin · 02/04/2022 15:07

It just sounds like you aren’t going to nice enough restaurants. The food and service should not be rubbish!

5128gap · 02/04/2022 16:38

I used to love it until going vegetarian and then vegan. Unless it's a vegan restaurant (which I wouldn't inflict on my non vegan friends and family) it's always a huge expensive disappointment. I can also no longer eat a lot of things I used to love, so I've become a lot more 'food as fuel' rather than eating for pleasure, and eating out as a leisure activity is now way down my list.

bumblingbovine49 · 02/04/2022 17:01

Everyone is of course entitle to their own opinion but DH and I went out for a lovely lunch yesterday and it really lifted my spirits. I love eating out. It was one of the main things I missed so much in lockdown. Then again I don't begrudge spending money on food , particularly if I haven't cooked it

SartresSoul · 02/04/2022 17:04

I think it’s the experience of being out of the house and also not having to clean up afterwards or actually cook even. I don’t mind it as a treat every now and then.

bumblingbovine49 · 02/04/2022 17:06

I am am actually a pretty good cook, and usy get a lot of compliment when I cook despite not particularly enjoying it. I cook well about 90% of the time with the odd disaster when I am feeling particularly unenthusiatic about the whole thing but it is a chore to me even when I do it well . You don't have to love cooking to be good at it , albeit I agree I am not a fantastic out of this world cook ( like my mother was)

Howmanydaysuntilfriday · 02/04/2022 17:11

You are right but also miserable

beattieedny · 02/04/2022 17:11

I hate it too. Don't mind a lunch, something low key, but I cannot be arsed with the faff of going out for dinner in the evening. I'd rather cook! I generally find restaurants underwhelming, although this may be due to having been raised by a chef. My parents were in the restaurant business so it was like peeking behind the curtain.

RampantIvy · 02/04/2022 17:16

Then I get the bill at the end and think omg could of brought loads in Lidl

That does come across as rather joyless and cheapskate TBH. Strictly speaking that would be true, but I don't buy all of my food from Lidl, and I'm happy to pay someone else to cook and serve me a meal and wash up afterwards. The cost of eating out isn't just about the price of the raw ingredients.

You are choosing the wrong places to eat in.

DoraSpenlow · 03/04/2022 15:57

@mydogisthebest

I totally get that you like eating out because you hate cooking. I would also guess that because you hate it you are likely not that good at it (sorry if I am wrong)

No I'm told I'm a good cook. Never much left on plates anyway. I have won prizes for my baking and my dear, much missed MIL, who was a cook, used to say I made the best curries and Sunday lunches. It's just the never-ending cycle and drudgery of it all that gets to me.

luckylavender · 03/04/2022 16:10

@drpet49

I don’t know a single person who doesn’t enjoy a meal out. You sound joyless.
That's a bit mean. There are people who don't enjoy eating out obviously. Because as my old Granny used to say 'it would an odd world if we all liked the same things'.
Tulip1985 · 03/04/2022 16:12

I hate eating out but love a takeaway as a treat