"My house used to have Thai Tuesday. We'd order takeout from our favorite local spot, happily trading time at the stove and a sink full of dishes for curries and noodles that arrived hot and delicious. At a little more than $10 a plate, it felt like a splurge but a manageable one. An easy-to-rationalize indulgence on a random weeknight when everyone was tired and hungry, and no one wanted to talk about quinoa."
"Ordering takeout used to feel like opting out of effort. Lately, it feels like opting into credit card debt. I do the quiet mental math while waiting in drive-thru lines: $13 meals times four people adds up to nearly $60 for my family's beloved Good Times burgers and fries. And that's just for fast food. Somewhere along the way, the dinner middle ground disappeared."
"But Thai Tuesday has gone the way of free bread at restaurants and anyone but me changing the rolls of toilet paper at my house. Not because we stopped loving Thai food, but because dinner now comes with a side of financial anxiety. As someone who loves to eat and try new restaurants, but who also loves paying her (thankfully-locked-in-at-2.5%) mortgage on time, I keep coming back to that age-old question, but for different reasons these days: What's for dinner?"
Households that once enjoyed affordable weekly takeout are facing significantly higher costs for to-go meals. Meals priced around $10 per person have increased so that ordering for a family of four can approach $60 or more. Takeout no longer feels like a simple convenience; it often generates credit-card anxiety and forces mental calculations at drive-thru lines. The compromise between home cooking and dining out has eroded as even casual fast-food and counter-service meals add up. Reports from friends and local community forums show widespread surprise at $16–$20 single meals and $60 tabs, constraining dinner choices and household budgets.
Read at www.denverpost.com
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