Kitchen

[kaydee50]

Eating in a restaurant is one of the few things we enjoy that is still available to us.  We've been doing it since restaurants opened here in mid June.  We feel it's important to support our local restaurants as best we can and will continue to both dine in and take out on a regular basis.

BTW, I hate to cook and DH does most of it!

[Johnnyeager]

New York City currently allows indoor dining at 25% capacity (except in the new hot zones.)

I am still dining outside at my favorite places since the weather had been nice.

I've dined inside at numerous upstate restaurants where capacity is 50%.

[MildredM]

In the lower desert of AZ it is still over 100 F. during the day. Too hot to sit and eat on an outside patio. Waiting for the weather to cool down.

[Icegoddess]

We never stopped eating out.  Of course, for awhile we just had to pick it up and take it home, and I did try to cook a bit more.  But, I don't enjoy cooking and it interferes with the things I do enjoy doing.  In the summer, I spend a lot of time working in the yard and planning a meal, buying groceries, and cooking would be a big hindrance for that as I am often spent by the time I'm done in the yard.  

[amyb]

I like to cook, but miss going out to restaurants too...which we used to do a couple times a week..including at the casinos we have here, with some of the best restaurants around. We've ordered take-out from our favorites during this time...and once things are back to normal we'll be back to eating out occasionally. It is a big expense though...so who knows...maybe it'll be more of a treat than all the time as much as before.

I will say, in our tri-state area...everyone flooded our shoreline CT towns over the summer, took up residence etc, as NY, NJ remained closed. So our outdoor restaurants were packed, all the time. And now CT has moved into phase 3, indoor will allow more people...I'm not sure it's safe or not...just saying...the popularity is still there. A lot of people like to eat out vs. cook at home, especially ALL the time. But...that's in my area...we have a lot of wonderful restaurants, and much as I like to cook, and can cook well...I still can't replicate some of my favorite places, and love to go out, feel the social atmosphere etc. I think that alone, after such isolation...will be a big draw. Just my opinion, based on our area and lifestyle habits.

[Kachina624]

For me, eating out becomes old very fast.  I often have no one with whom to eat and I HATE to eat alone in a restaurant.  Many of our restaurants have already gone out of business.

[Grouchomarx]

In the beginning I was cooking a lot.  We did some takout now and again but the options aren't exactly perfect in my area.  Once restaurants reopened we go every weekend Fri, Sat and sometimes Sunday. I don't mind cooking but I sure prefer dining out.  It's not just the food, it's a social experience for us since we are very friendly with all the restaurant staff in the various places we go.  I like to dress up too. so there's that.  If it were economically feasible, I'd happily eat out 5 times a week.  But it does add up, the way we eat and drink.  Indoor dining has been wonderful, lots of space around us and we don't have to talk loudly to be heard.  However, this will be coming to a close very soon with the onset of fall and winter.  On rainy nights the indoors gets full and it gets back to being loud.  Once it's freezing out, this will be every weekend.  At least we enjoyed it while we could.

[RedTop]

Any restaurant that depends on my dollars to stay in business is doomed from the get-go.  

Eating out is a rare happening for me, and I'm most familiar with foods from Cracker Barrel, Bob Evans, Outback, KFC, and Arby's.  

Several times a year I crave a burger and fries from a local diner, but my family prefers my cooking and I trust the food prepared in my kitchen over food from any restaurant kitchen.   

[4kitties]

Unless we are traveling or it is a special event, we rarely eat at restaurants.  There are certain ones that offer a specialty that I cannot duplicate at home.  We do go to them occasionally.  

Restaurant food is usually not healthy.  Way too much sodium, fat and calories for me.  I have googled nutrition info in anticipation of going to a certain restaurant and trying to decide what I can safely eat.  The sodium levels are out of site.  

I prefer to cook and eat at home.  I know exactly what is in my food and where it was purchased.  

[homedecor1]

Our restaurants are open 100% but the few we always ate & re-visited we just didn't like it☹️.  The service was poor but the food tasted "old" -- I mean how can a cook mess-up omelet & home fries🤷‍♀️.

Then we went to Applebee's for a burger (spouse wanted to try it) yuck..brown/grey meat (and that's cooked) didn't appeal to me...I sent mine back.

I feel there aren't enough people eating out for the restaurants to go thru the food supply fast -- at our fav place at dinner there

were only 4 other couples & Applebees it was us and a other couple.

Not sure but I think a lot of restaurants (other than chain ones) are going to close☹️

Funny request from spouse can you make the broccoli and noodle recipe (@zhills) you haven't made this in awhile! I enjoy cooking and during shutdown tried some new things -- now it's just easy meals.

🙂