What’s Gotta Go

I think I have quickly revealed I am a fairly cheap guy when it comes to spending money. Really, I am not cheap, I just like getting value for my money. When I want something good, I am willing to spend the money I feel is appropriate to get the best quality for what I am getting. A good example, I will spend a lot of money on a quality digital SLR camera because I know I will use it like crazy, enjoy it and I want the quality output for what I am doing.

Food is not one of those areas I typically feel good about opening up the wallet for. I enjoy eating out, and periodically I will take my wife to a “nice” restaurant and spend more than my normal budget for an outing. Rarely do I feel like I got the value for what was spent. Sure, I enjoy a good slab of meat like the next guy, but I have a hard time feeling like one steak is $40+ more in value than the next one. Outback tends to rank right up with Ruth’s Cris in my humble opinion.

Of course when you are at a “fine dining” establishment, they assume you enjoy spending your hard earned cash in large quantities. Want to appear really good, instead of pricing for menu items use the word “market” especially on seafood items. Even finer the establishment, no pricing included at all. If you need to ask, you don’t belong here is basically what they are saying.

I guess what really bugs me though is the quality of the food you get for the money. I know, presentation, blah, blah, blah. I like a well put together plate, and the combination of foods is great, but really it is the quality of food that matters. A salad needs to have quality lettuce with a good combination of flavors. The steak needs to be cooked properly, seasoned to perfection and above all moist - I HATE dry meats. Portion size should be appropriate, not these tiny things on huge plates and a dribble of sauce in some fancy shmancy pattern. Appetizers shouldn’t be priced like an entre any other restaurant.
John Chow brought this to mind with his blog post about a really expensive hamburger. I cannot even begin to imagine spending that kind of dough for any kind of burger. On my trip to NY last week I had a $17 “steak burger” and the Red Eye Grill and left unsatisfied to say the least. It did not even compare to my brother-in-law’s creation on his humble backyard grill. By the way, the secret to having a moist, thick burger that stays together…mix in some shredded cheese to the burger. Acts like glue and a keeps the burger oh so moist even when you cook it through. Don’t say you never learned anything from this site :)

So, what will I do about this distaste (pun intended) for expensive food. Nothing really. I don’t frequent places that have pricey food anyway, and when I do it is typically on a special occasion, so there is more to the evening than just the value of the food for what I spend. I can still rant about it though :)