YumSugar

How to Avoid Awkwardness When the Bill Arrives

SavvySugar — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 05:30:32 PST

When you're dining out with friends and the check arrives, things can turn uncomfortable quickly. Is the tip included? Should the cost be divided evenly? Some people just ate appetizers, some people just had drinks, and only a handful brought cash - what do you do? Follow these quick tips to keep things pleasant when the bill appears.

Make a date with the ATM. Unless you regularly keep cash in your wallet, you should always stop at the ATM before meeting up with a group. Some restaurants are picky about charging multiple credit cards, so think ahead and stop by the bank before any group get-togethers. Better yet, buy something to break all those $20 bills.
Communicate early. As soon as everyone is settled in and preparing to order, initiate a casual conversation about their bill expectations. Find out whether your friends plan to order appetizers, full meals, or just drinks, then talk about tip options and come to a consensus on how you'll handle the tab.
Pass the bill. It's polite to pass the check folder around the table so that everyone has a chance to look at the bill. Once each person has seen the tab and made their contribution, take charge and count the cash to make sure enough money has been added. If the total comes up short, don't single out any one person - instead, kindly let the entire group know how much more is needed and let each person decide whether she needs to chip in a bit more.

On Party Etiquette: Is It OK to Bring Cake to a Restaurant?

Susannah Chen — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 12:15:12 PST

Let's face it: dining out is a totally subjective experience, and I've often wished there were hard and fast rules in place for issues like splitting the bill or whether coat checks should be mandatory. The question du jour? Whether it's OK to bring a birthday cake to a restaurant.I've just turned 30, and I'm celebrating by having dinner with a dozen friends at a small, family-owned ethnic restaurant. It feels apropos to have a cake for the occasion, but since the event takes place at a restaurant, I worry that the whole cake-and-candles thing could not only be disruptive, but also put a strain on the restaurant.

Guidelines on birthday cake etiquette seem to vary. Some restaurants are happy to do it; some request a call ahead; many other high-end establishments charge an (often pricey) cake-cutting fee. Still, others think it's a practice that should be cut out entirely. "I'm always baffled by people bringing their own cake. Do you bring your own steak?" one commenter asked rhetorically on a discussion board about the topic.

I want to hear what you think: if a restaurant doesn't focus on dessert, is it OK to bring your own birthday cake, candles, and lighter to dinner? What do you think of a per-person plating fee? Please weigh in below.

Save on Eating Out in 2012 With These 12 Realistic Tips!

Emily Co — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 03:05:07 PST

One of the hardest thing to budget in the past year was eating habits, according to SavvySugar readers. Of course, there is always the simple solution of just eating at home more often, but you can still cut your food bill here and there when you're eating out. We've given you plenty of tips in the past on how to save when eating out so we're rehashing some of the best ones as well as throwing in some our new frugal ideas! Here they are:

Use coupons. Go to Restaurant.com and enter in a coupon code for restaurant.com that'll get you a $25 voucher for only $2. You can find the coupon code by searching the keyword "restaurant.com" on the coupon site RetailMeNot. Buy a local Entertainment book worth $15 that will give you lots of buy one get one free coupons for restaurants.

Don't eat out when you're dining solo. Try to save your meal excursions for when you're with friends and family. This means that if you're planning on grabbing a quick bite by yourself, it's better to prepare something at home to eat instead. A big part of the joy of eating out is ambiance and company, so save your money and skip grabbing quick meals when you're alone.

Ration meals with friends. Even if you're saving all your meals out for when you have company, don't be too liberal when you're scheduling them. Try to rotate among different people if you're planning on having one-on-one dinners and space it out. Remember you can always catch up with people over drinks or during a fun activity so don't feel bad about skipping dinner.

Opt for lunch: Oftentimes, the lunch menu is a lot cheaper than dinner. When meeting up with people, try to opt for lunch as your preferred meal. Be sure to also pick their lunch specials.

Read on for more tips.

Get the Dish: Waldorf Salad

YumSugar — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 08:25:18 PST

The Waldorf salad may be over a century old, but even today, it remains a timeless American classic. The apple and walnut salad was first created in the late 1800s at New York's legendary Waldorf=Astoria Hotel, where it's still the most frequently requested recipe on the menu. We stopped in to the kitchen where it all began and saw firsthand how the original Waldorf salad is prepared. See how the salad's prepared - it's even lighter and more refreshing than you might think! - then get the recipe.

Mario Batali's Quips on Restaurants Today

Susannah Chen — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 21:03:06 PDT

To kick off the third morning of the NYC Wine & Food Festival, four of the industry's top tastemakers, restaurateurs Mario Batali and Marcus Samuelsson, TV host Andrew Zimmern, and Food & Wine editor in chief Dana Cowin gathered for a panel discussion to talk about what makes the best restaurant experience.

They all had plenty to say about the state of dining - especially the jocular Batali. Here are just a few of his one-liners.

On turning tables: "We have loud music at Babbo while you're eating soigné food. From 7:30 to 8:15 p.m. we turn it up and make it faster to get people out of there."
On tables in New York: "The beauty of New York is, even if five million people on Yelp hate me, there are still eight million left."
On how far the industry's come: "Thirty years ago, restaurant staffs were people who just got out of jail or people who'd just gotten out of the military and were on their way to jail."

Keep reading for the rest of Mario Batali's restaurant zingers.

Grahamwich: Nostalgia With a Spread of Whimsy

OnSugar Blog — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 13:29:23 PDT

Graham Elliot Bowles is just one of America's celebrity chefs with a sandwich obsession. Between the Bread visits Chicago and stops into his new-ish eatery, Grahamwich.

Like chefs Tom Colicchio and Dennis Leary before him, Graham Elliot Bowles has a sandwich side project. Last fall, the Michelin-starred owner of Graham Elliot opened Grahamwich in downtown Chicago, so when I visited my peeps at PopSugar Chicago last week, we had our lunch meeting over sammies - or should I say "grahamies"? Though not as avant garde as No. 7 Sub, Grahamwich gives nostalgic favorites a modern, quirky twist. Click through to see what we ate.

Want more? Start following Between the Bread for more sandwich deliciousness, then get crackin' on your own food blog. You may even wind up featured here.

How to Eat at a Trendy Restaurant

Katie Sweeney — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 10:21:30 PDT

Many new and popular restaurants do not accept reservations. While I understand an establishment's motivations for not taking reservations (it's more convenient, cost efficient, and eliminates the issue of no-shows), it can be incredibly frustrating as a diner to want to eat at a trendy establishment that is known for its long wait. As an avid girl-about-town, I've devised the perfect plan for minimizing the wait. Here's what you do:

Research the eatery before you arrive. Some places don't take reservations, but they will let you call in advance and add your name to the list. If that's the case, call up to two hours before you want to eat and politely give the hostess your name.
Go earlier or later. Show up at the restaurant about 15 minutes after it's opened; chances are they won't be full yet, and you'll be able to enjoy a meal without having to wait. The opposite option is to get there on the later side: after 9 p.m. You'll miss the dinner rush and hopefully be greeted with a shorter line.
Be prepared to wait. Don't eat at a hot spot when you have a limited amount of time to dine. Got to be someplace after the meal (the theater, a party, a sporting event, etc.)? Then, select an eatery that can get you in and out quickly, not one that has a long wait.

To see the rest of my tips, keep reading.

Check Out The Melt, Coming Soon to a City Near You

Susannah Chen — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 01:38:11 PDT

It's finally here! The Melt, a nationwide grilled cheese concept that we've named one of the five fast-casual chains to look out for, has opened its first location today in San Francisco. The outfit, founded by Silicon Valley exec Jonathan Kaplan, will utilize mobile technology for ordering and pickup in a way that's never been done before. Earlier this Summer, we showed you a preview of the menu offerings, but prior to opening, we got a closer look at the space and the restaurant's technology. Click through to learn more.
Source: PR Newswire

5 Fast-Casual Chains to Look Out For

Susannah Chen — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 04:09:29 PDT

Last week, the quick-service industry was buzzing with speculation about In-N-Out Burger: based on the comments of at least one insider, In-N-Out may finally be expanding to the Southwestern part of the country.

Regardless of what the California burger chain has in store, it's undeniable that there's plenty of growth in fast-casual chains right now. While traditional fast-food companies like Burger King are struggling, a number of smaller, newer chains are blowing up across the country. Here are a five eateries to watch out for.

What's the Most You're Willing to Spend on Street Food?

Susannah Chen — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 13:28:41 PDT

We spent last weekend at the San Francisco Street Food Festival and didn't walk away with too much damage to our pockets, but that could be changing. According to SFoodie, the latest event to hit San Francisco is a Street Eats Benefit Gala that'll set attendees back as much as $225.

The price tag - which is awfully steep to pay for something coming out of a cart or a truck - got me thinking about what the price ceiling is when it comes to street food. What seems like a reasonable amount to pay for offerings such as banh mi tacos and caramelized s'mores? I don't think I would spend more than $12 on any single item I've ever seen come out of a food truck. Do you, like me, have a magic number?