We decided to not eat out in Hawaii for 30 days. We learned a lot and saved quite a bit of money. I know that food is a big part of Hawaii’s culture. Hawaii people love to eat. And they especially love to eat out. Part of it is because the food tastes great, but I think part of it is the culture. And considering we live in the most expensive state, I sometimes find it interesting that local people love to eat out. So I intereviewed my wife about what she experienced while not eating out in Hawaii for one month. For me, it wasn’t really hard, but it was challenging for her. And of course, we saved a lot of money.
Filmed using the DJI Osmo Action.
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29 Comments
Great video, Chris, and an excellent idea! If I could only employ this on my wife and her constant Amazon “from cell phone” shopping! 😊
Where we are it’s almost cheaper to eat out at some places. Eggs, dairy, meat….very expensive here with inflation. I know it is not as high as Hawaii, but I feel your wife’s pain. It’s a lot of work if you have to care for young kids and clean up on top of your everyday stuff going on. Good job with sticking with it though, $475 is no joke!
I love eating outside in Hawaii because the food is great & it's fun to go out with friends in such nice weather……On the other hand, Japanese don't due to the high cost. My mom spent about 8hrs in the kitchen for 50+yrs. But nowadays, Japanese women don't work the house a lot though. Values are shifting.
I haven't eaten out since the pandemic! I realized very quickly just how much money I was spending on it and how much I could save by not doing so. I chose to never go back unless it is a necessity. I'm talking about months worth of money. It is so easy to learn how to cook just about anything you want via YouTube and most ingredients can be bought in bulk. So there was one thing good that came out of that pandemic I guess, and that was a lesson in frugality.
I feel your pain.
Food is my love language and we have a rule in my household that we go out to eat as a family. Everything is so expensive and of course if you're eating at a sit down place you have to tip, right? Of course!! Plus when we make stuff at home I can omit things I don't like and add more of what I do like. My coworkers always bring extra as do I do we can share and feel like we have a variety. And I make my own coffee via coffee pods instead of going to Pete's or Starbucks daily. Saves me a bit and I don't feel like I'm missing out on my daily cup/s of coffee which I enjoy.
We’re forced to pay the price to keep ourselves sane. What we used to pay for a family of 4 eating out weekly was around $55 – now it’s up to $85-$99 crazy!!
Single Waikiki dad here w/ a daughter to care for. While due to expense, eating in is the norm, I can definitely relate to having a "challenging day" and cooking plus the clean-up being the last thing I want to do. On those rare occasions, it is a blessing to have so many great options to choose from and bring home as a tasty treat to keep the stress in check. Thanks for sharing your experience.
I love your videos, but to be accurate, you need to take into consideration how much more you spent at the grocery store. I'm sure money was saved by not eating out, though…just not quite as much as you think.
While I don't go out for meals too much, I am guility of eating mostly pre packaged convenience foods at home. I guess you could say I don't really "cook" so much as heat things up. Think frozen pizza, boxed pasta meals, microwaveable foods, etc. If I do use the stove it's for boiling water for a prepackaged meal. After work I go to the gym (free at the campus where I work) and then when I get home I don't have the time to make something from scratch. My husband is more of a cook than I am and works from home so he's there to cook anything that takes longer than just heating something up. It's difficult to cook if you're working full time or more than one job withought having someone who's home more to cook or at least get the prep work done. Where I have to be careful is just getting something to go from a restaurant to take home, it's not just dining in the restaurant that's expensive, but sometimes I wonder with the price of groceries if I'm not breaking even picking up food from somewhere to eat at home.
I'm visiting for two weeks. I'm eating out. The cost of living is increasing everywhere. I'm in shock, but you can save a lot of money. It's all about convience. You can save for a house by investing that money. I eat one meal a day out.
eating out is all about convenience for me with having a full time job and kids! We don't do it often though, but grocery shopping, planning, cooking and cleaning is a lot of work lol, nice to have a break from that sometimes. I'm glad you guys survived this month challenge, but you're right, Hawaii has such good food! The irony of the cost of living here paired with the love of eating out was spot on
I live in Charlotte, North Carolina and the rent here is outrageous because so many people have moved her especially from New York. I eat out another 2 times a year because it is expensive to live here as well. I have an idea for y’all … why don’t you pack a picnic and go to a park or the beach to eat? That way you can save money and still go out. 🤔
Thank you for sharing your story about life there in Hawaii.
Thanks for the vlog. Plate lunch prices got crazy! Good thing I enjoy cooking. I mainly cook on the weekends when I have more time. When I cook, I make enough so that it will last several days. What I don't eat right away, I freeze. Makes it is easier during the week. Eating out is usually a plan B for me.
Eating out is not the most beneficial, ie, health-conscious and costs . I admit all the diverse cuisine is delicious.
So tough, good job!
Smh people in Hawaii. are forever whining about the high cost of everything, yet you constantly "eat out " ?? So basically it's the old, you want to have your cake, and eat too? I live on the east coast – just bought grocercies for 2 weeks $135 ! but I'm so content to just cook, bake and freeze my food. 😊 PLZ no more sob stories of how Hawaii is being "priced out". I think (some people over there), just like to complain??!
We watch your videos as soon as you post them and we look forward to them. I'm sure you probably meant the tourist or mainlanders instead of white people when you made this comment. But since my husband is a local boy and I'm that white chick from the mainland..lol lol. Let me tell you what we see from our side of the fence. First off we have trouble getting into restaurants in Florida where we live for 8 months because we have all the snowbirds that come down and clog up the restaurants. So we look forward to coming over here and eating the wonderful food but we don't go out to eat very often and normally we just pick up a carryout. But the funny part is when we do go out to eat we watch the Asians who are coming over from Japan to visit take pictures of all their food and every bite they put in their mouth. So I guess it's kind of depends on what side of the fence you're standing on. Eating out is very expensive whether it be in Florida or Hawaii. And it has created a situation where we do eat in more than we go out and that gives us a lot more time to watch your videos. Kiss the baby's faces. we love you guys
The worst shock for locals was seeing your favorite plate lunch prices jump.
This was so good thanks for sharing
I don't think I could go a whole month without In-N-Out Burger! 🙂
eating out once in a week is ok…but not everyday…sometimes you fed up cooking and eating the same food over and over again sometimes like for 3 meals eating the same food 😩😂 so it won't go to waste
I love your wife’s commitment to adhere to not trying to eat out. But as a husband married for 23 years with two kids that are grown. Even though it is proven that eating at home is prevalent than eating out. I learned that my wife needed that outlet to relieve some of pent up stress of each days struggles as a mom and wife. In this tough economy with cost of living going up it’s hard to keep expenses down. So I give two thumbs up for your wife’s commitment.
I've been cooking and eating at home since COVID 19 started, I save money and eat healthy more, since 2020 until now I cooked and eat at home.
you can save alot of money eating at home
Hello this video is nice and clear
Since the 'demic started my home-cooking game has improved a ton. Growing being very poor on the windward side, I already had some cook-fu, but man …. meal from restaurant might be $15 or $20, but I can make something as good at home for like $5 or $6.
10:00 how much they saved
Long ago, not just in the Before Times but just before the crash of 2008, I realized I, myself, alone, was spending about $900 a month on food! I was making good money, so I was like, Hey I'm making a few hundred a day, I can spend $30 a day on food …. well, I had to get serious about paying down credit cards so I started keeping track, in a Composition Notebook, of all my expenses, and wow, I was spending that much on food? i got it down to $300-$400 and eventually over time I've learned I can eat well on $200 or so. I can go down further from there, but wow just wow. Try keeping track, people, you might be strapped for money and not realize you're spending $300 a month on sodas or something.