Saving $$ when you eat out!

article 5  in Stretching Your Dollar~

Have you ever made an unplanned stop to eat, only to realize that you have coupon
for the restaurant ... but it's at home?!
You've taken the time to collect & clip coupons for restaurants, but you don't have them when you need them.
Frustrating.

Several years ago, I got tired of that happening, so I came up with a solution.
I keep an envelope of restaurant coupons in the glove box of our Suburban!

Each day, I presort the mail as it comes in ...
the bills go in the bill bin in the office, the junk mail goes in the trash, & the ads
& coupons go in this basket {along w/a few other things, as you can see}.

This basket sits on the shelf in my pantry, holding ads, coupons, notes, etc until I
have time to go through them ... keeping the clutter off the counter.

 My current dilemma, however, is that my envelope is too small to hold all the coupons.
So, I've upgraded to a file folder that I keep in the door pocket.

Any time we decide to stop & eat, the coupons are right where they need to be,
ready for use.
If you plan your eating out around the coupons you have to use, you've found
another way to stretch your dollar!

Here are a a few other ways to save:
1)  Order water instead of soda or tea ~
This alone has saved our family HUNDREDS of dollars over the years!

2)  Don't order the most expensive item on the menu ~
More than likely, this isn't your last meal ;)

3)  Lunch prices are always cheaper ~
If at all possible, eat out during lunch hours.
Also, if eating at a buffet, you can cheap cheat a little by getting there just before the 'supper' prices start thus getting the lunch price for the supper items!

4)  Get CHEAP deals by using Restaurants.com ~
You can score gift certificates for $25 worth of food for $2!!
Yes, you read that right, $2!!
If you've never used Restaurant.com, read all about it here.

5)  Groupon is another way to get some cheap eats.
When they offer a discount on a restaurant we enjoy, I grab up the deal!
If Groupon is new to you, check it out here.

On a quick side note, thank you for bearing with my photos.
Sometimes the quality is not so great, as my camera seems to have a mind of it's own.
I'm shopping for a new one, however, so the pictures should be much improved soon!