6 ms·

> Eating out is the best example. In West eating out is the default choice, even those who can't afford it will choose to eat out. What? Not at all. Maybe in y

> Eating out is the best example. In West eating out is the default choice, even those who can't afford it will choose to eat out. What? Not at all. Maybe in your country, it is.

chillwaves 9y ago
I work in Washington DC and eating out is very much a default choice.
- perseusprime11 9y ago
  It’s actually the other way. Cooking is expensive in US. You spend a lot of money, buy recipe books, spend a whole lot of time cooking a mediocre meal. Now we have more options like Blue Apron but even those are expensive.
  - the_cat_kittles 9y ago
    what? i cook all the time. better food, cheaper, often quicker. you just need a little bit of skill.
  - drakonandor 9y ago
    I think the whole point of cooking for yourself is so you can get better at it.. The first few times you cook an omelette, it might suck, the Denny's $4 breakfast might be better, but it won't take long for you to surpass that point.
  - Shivetya 9y ago
    cooking is not expensive in the US. you can make it expensive, especially in buying over priced appliances, utensils, and other kitchen gadgets. however raw foods are well priced and when you work out complete meals. to avoid mediocre meals work you way up the difficulty chain and make sure to adhere to recipes. the number one way to make a mediocre meal is lack of preparation and the second is to short cut a recipe. plus when you get the hand of it you can make larger meals and freeze/store what you don't eat then so you have something tasty all week long
    - jessaustin 9y ago
      The best way to get better at cooking is to consider recipes, and then cook how you want to cook. Baked goods are an exception to that, until you get really good at baking. For some types of baked goods, I'm almost to that point... There is a class of American recipes, designed for a mythical 1960s housewife, that amount to little more than dumping various factory-manufactured prepared goods together. Ignore those altogether. Although the meal might be edible, it won't improve your cooking.
  - IncRnd 9y ago
    Cooking is practically free in the US. Many people in the US don't know how to purchase produce and also choose to purchase gadgets. All you need is a simple pan or a pot and some heat. None of that is expensive. Plus, you can get recipes over the Internet for free when needed.
  - juanmirocks 9y ago
    By all means, I cannot understand how cooking can be more expensive than eating out. The only possible exception is if you value the time spent in cooking much more. This I do, and I basically only drink bulletproof and soylent shakes.
    - erichurkman 9y ago
      If you cook a full meal seven nights a week, where ever meal is different, and cooked with quality ingredients, it absolutely can be more expensive. Though, if you actually plan your menu, or plan dishes that can carry over to two or three nights, cooking is far cheaper.
      - u801e 9y ago
        > If you cook a full meal seven nights a week, where ever meal is different, and cooked with quality ingredients, it absolutely can be more expensive. True, but most people will probably cook maybe two to three dishes and make them last a week. Even then, you may spend about $30 for the entire week on materials. If you ate a typical fast food combo once a day instead, you're looking at roughly $50 per week.
      - deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]
      - Domenic_S 9y ago
        > it absolutely can be more expensive This is meaningless; what's being compared? Yes, buying and cooking a prime filet is going to be more expensive than hitting up Wendy's, is that unexpected?
  - tjr225 9y ago
    Only someone who has not tried very hard to plan and cook meals would think this way, which I admit as an American many of my peers do feel this way. While it might seem like there is a steep learning curve to cooking, there isn't.
    - walshemj 9y ago
      And with the rise in women working in the west it would be odd if people didn't learn to cook from a young age I have cooked some of my own meals since I was 13 or so
  - saryant 9y ago
    https://www.thekitchn.com/search?q=Cooking+Lessons+from+The+Kitchn https://www.thekitchn.com/search?q=Cooking+Lessons+from+The+... There you go. No need to buy any more cookbooks.
  - andybak 9y ago
    > buy recipe books What the hell? Buy some meat, vegetables. Chop them. Chuck in some soy sauce, garlic and ginger. Don't like East Asian? Grab that red curry paste that lasts for weeks in the fridge and a can of coconut milk... Buy some meat and vegetables and chuck it in a saucepan. Boil some rice. Don't like Thai? Buy some meat and vegetables. Chuck them in a saucepan with garlic and some herbs. Boil some pasta. Don't like Mediterranean? Buy some meat and vegetables. Chuck them in a saucepan with incredible amounts of paprika and some potatoes. Don't like Hungarian? OK. I'm being slightly flippant but it's really not hard. You get a few basic combinations and you vary them. A few flavourings, sauces or spices and the same basic principles will get you a good meal in 30-45 minutes whatever your preferences are. I sometimes buy premade sauces (which are usually mediocre but give you a good base) and then add some fresh garlic, chilli etc to make it taste less shop-bought. Just make sure you always have a few staples in (rice, pasta, noodles, garlic, chilli, onion, ginger, soy, canned tomatoes - that kind of thing) and grab some meat and veg in your local shop. You can always knock something together.
  - com2kid 9y ago
    $14, bourbon beef rib eye for 2, all up. $4 of green beans + onions + vinegar and I've got a meal for 2 at less than what it'd cost for a single rib eye at a restaurant. Value your time? Learn to use a pressure cooker, or slow cooker. Once you get good at prep work, it is 10-15 minutes to prepare all the ingredients and put them into a pot. I've spent that long finding parking in DT areas of major cities, not to mention waiting in line at a restaurant just to get a seat.
- csours 9y ago
  Isn't eating out part of the job for many people in DC?
- Overtonwindow 9y ago
  Yep. It's sometimes easier to eat out downtown than sit in traffic to get home to eat.
  - periya 9y ago
    Or you could not drive out and just pack your lunch from home.
deanCommie 9y ago
American website, so to too many people "The West" is US. I moved to Western Europe and was shocked how much less people eat out in France/Germany/Netherlands/Belgium.
- robk 9y ago
  British website
  - cpach 9y ago
    wat
  - why-el 9y ago
    Depends what is meant, HN or The Economist. I think the parent meant HN.
juanmirocks 9y ago
Agreed. From my experience living in Spain and Germany, at least for me and friends, eating out is not the norm. We reserve dinners in restaurants for the weekend only. Often also, we cook together, which is lots of fun. Indians cook together in big groups and I love that part of their culture.
JackFr 9y ago
It's an urban density issue. In Manhattan, groceries are expensive, storage is limited and there are many restaurant options across the price spectrum. So very often you end up buying dinner on your way home, whether shopping for groceries, getting take out or dining out. It turns out the price differential is surprisingly low. (If you don't drink alcohol, which is always substantially cheaper at home. )

> Eating out is the best example. In West eating out is the default choice, even those who can't afford it will choose to eat out. What? Not at all. Maybe in your country, it is.

chillwaves 9y ago

I work in Washington DC and eating out is very much a default choice.

perseusprime11 9y ago
It’s actually the other way. Cooking is expensive in US. You spend a lot of money, buy recipe books, spend a whole lot of time cooking a mediocre meal. Now we have more options like Blue Apron but even those are expensive.
- the_cat_kittles 9y ago
  what? i cook all the time. better food, cheaper, often quicker. you just need a little bit of skill.
- drakonandor 9y ago
  I think the whole point of cooking for yourself is so you can get better at it.. The first few times you cook an omelette, it might suck, the Denny's $4 breakfast might be better, but it won't take long for you to surpass that point.
- Shivetya 9y ago
  cooking is not expensive in the US. you can make it expensive, especially in buying over priced appliances, utensils, and other kitchen gadgets. however raw foods are well priced and when you work out complete meals. to avoid mediocre meals work you way up the difficulty chain and make sure to adhere to recipes. the number one way to make a mediocre meal is lack of preparation and the second is to short cut a recipe. plus when you get the hand of it you can make larger meals and freeze/store what you don't eat then so you have something tasty all week long
  - jessaustin 9y ago
    The best way to get better at cooking is to consider recipes, and then cook how you want to cook. Baked goods are an exception to that, until you get really good at baking. For some types of baked goods, I'm almost to that point... There is a class of American recipes, designed for a mythical 1960s housewife, that amount to little more than dumping various factory-manufactured prepared goods together. Ignore those altogether. Although the meal might be edible, it won't improve your cooking.
- IncRnd 9y ago
  Cooking is practically free in the US. Many people in the US don't know how to purchase produce and also choose to purchase gadgets. All you need is a simple pan or a pot and some heat. None of that is expensive. Plus, you can get recipes over the Internet for free when needed.
- juanmirocks 9y ago
  By all means, I cannot understand how cooking can be more expensive than eating out. The only possible exception is if you value the time spent in cooking much more. This I do, and I basically only drink bulletproof and soylent shakes.
  - erichurkman 9y ago
    If you cook a full meal seven nights a week, where ever meal is different, and cooked with quality ingredients, it absolutely can be more expensive. Though, if you actually plan your menu, or plan dishes that can carry over to two or three nights, cooking is far cheaper.
    - u801e 9y ago
      > If you cook a full meal seven nights a week, where ever meal is different, and cooked with quality ingredients, it absolutely can be more expensive. True, but most people will probably cook maybe two to three dishes and make them last a week. Even then, you may spend about $30 for the entire week on materials. If you ate a typical fast food combo once a day instead, you're looking at roughly $50 per week.
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]
    - Domenic_S 9y ago
      > it absolutely can be more expensive This is meaningless; what's being compared? Yes, buying and cooking a prime filet is going to be more expensive than hitting up Wendy's, is that unexpected?
- tjr225 9y ago
  Only someone who has not tried very hard to plan and cook meals would think this way, which I admit as an American many of my peers do feel this way. While it might seem like there is a steep learning curve to cooking, there isn't.
  - walshemj 9y ago
    And with the rise in women working in the west it would be odd if people didn't learn to cook from a young age I have cooked some of my own meals since I was 13 or so
- saryant 9y ago
  https://www.thekitchn.com/search?q=Cooking+Lessons+from+The+Kitchn https://www.thekitchn.com/search?q=Cooking+Lessons+from+The+... There you go. No need to buy any more cookbooks.
- andybak 9y ago
  > buy recipe books What the hell? Buy some meat, vegetables. Chop them. Chuck in some soy sauce, garlic and ginger. Don't like East Asian? Grab that red curry paste that lasts for weeks in the fridge and a can of coconut milk... Buy some meat and vegetables and chuck it in a saucepan. Boil some rice. Don't like Thai? Buy some meat and vegetables. Chuck them in a saucepan with garlic and some herbs. Boil some pasta. Don't like Mediterranean? Buy some meat and vegetables. Chuck them in a saucepan with incredible amounts of paprika and some potatoes. Don't like Hungarian? OK. I'm being slightly flippant but it's really not hard. You get a few basic combinations and you vary them. A few flavourings, sauces or spices and the same basic principles will get you a good meal in 30-45 minutes whatever your preferences are. I sometimes buy premade sauces (which are usually mediocre but give you a good base) and then add some fresh garlic, chilli etc to make it taste less shop-bought. Just make sure you always have a few staples in (rice, pasta, noodles, garlic, chilli, onion, ginger, soy, canned tomatoes - that kind of thing) and grab some meat and veg in your local shop. You can always knock something together.
- com2kid 9y ago
  $14, bourbon beef rib eye for 2, all up. $4 of green beans + onions + vinegar and I've got a meal for 2 at less than what it'd cost for a single rib eye at a restaurant. Value your time? Learn to use a pressure cooker, or slow cooker. Once you get good at prep work, it is 10-15 minutes to prepare all the ingredients and put them into a pot. I've spent that long finding parking in DT areas of major cities, not to mention waiting in line at a restaurant just to get a seat.
csours 9y ago
Isn't eating out part of the job for many people in DC?
Overtonwindow 9y ago
Yep. It's sometimes easier to eat out downtown than sit in traffic to get home to eat.
- periya 9y ago
  Or you could not drive out and just pack your lunch from home.

deanCommie 9y ago

American website, so to too many people "The West" is US. I moved to Western Europe and was shocked how much less people eat out in France/Germany/Netherlands/Belgium.

robk 9y ago
British website
- cpach 9y ago
  wat
- why-el 9y ago
  Depends what is meant, HN or The Economist. I think the parent meant HN.

juanmirocks 9y ago

Agreed. From my experience living in Spain and Germany, at least for me and friends, eating out is not the norm. We reserve dinners in restaurants for the weekend only. Often also, we cook together, which is lots of fun. Indians cook together in big groups and I love that part of their culture.

JackFr 9y ago

It's an urban density issue. In Manhattan, groceries are expensive, storage is limited and there are many restaurant options across the price spectrum. So very often you end up buying dinner on your way home, whether shopping for groceries, getting take out or dining out. It turns out the price differential is surprisingly low. (If you don't drink alcohol, which is always substantially cheaper at home. )