PAY LIKE A SERF. SMART CHANGES THAT WILL ENSURE YOUR RESTAURANT BILLS ARE EASY TO DIGEST
LOOK FOR BIG PORTIONS:Seek out terms like “hot-pot”, “meal in a bowl” and “pot rice” in the menu description. At South-east Asian restaurants, your best bet is a portion of spicy fried rice called Nasi Goreng. At a Continental place, it’s the sizzler. Busaba serves a huge Korean meal for two called Jungsik. And the city’s biggest burger is at Hard Rock Café. Can’t finish? Doggy bag it for tomorrow – dinner just came with free lunch!
DON’T FALL FOR DIY:
Places that let you choose pizza toppings, sandwich filling, stir fry wok additions, and pastas are great. But you pay more for the same number of addons as regular dishes. Weigh your customisation against a similar a la carte option and take the cheaper deal. Why pay extra for celery and artichoke (instead of cherry tomatoes and olives) in your penne?
TIME IT RIGHT:
Breakfast and lunch deals are often cheaper than dinner. Yauatcha’s set lunch is available from Monday to Saturday; soup, dim sum, main course and dessert is R988 (about half the price of an average meal). Neel’s set lunch ( R1,000) has starters or soup, biryani or breads with main course, and dessert and is a value meal. Indigo Café’s R435 breakfast ensures you have no room for lunch. Otto Infinito’s breakfast – eggs, flavoured yoghurt, fruits, hash browns and sausages – comes at R275. But if you finish work late, head to a hotel’s midnight buffet. ITC Grand Central’s spread costs R666, Novotel’s is R400, Marine Plaza’s is R475 and Orchid’s is R550.
DIG DEEPER:
Many lunch deals are available for dinner and weekday deals are often valid through the weekend. India Jones’s unlimited dim sum lunch is served through the week. Goa Portuguesa’s Maharashtrian thali – meat fish and dessert for R399 – is so popular, it’s on for dinner too. Or go to Smoke House Deli, where the eggs Benedict on the all-day breakfast menu is as delicious at 8.30pm.
PLAN IT WELL:
Stuck treating a big gang? Head to the restaurant a day before and pre-order a selection that fits your budget. Demand a discount for preordering and paying upfront. Print menus with each guests’ name so they feel special.
BRING IT HOME:
Restaurants often offer discounts on home delivery and takeaway. Bag your meal and drive out spending 20 per cent less than dine-ins. And always make sure that the service charge has been taken off your bill.
PICK WISELY:
Hip restaurants last only a few years. The first eight months is when it’s packed and when the servers throw attitude. The months after are when the buzz dies down and the restaurant struggles to regain it. That’s when you’re likely to get better service, better deals and better value for money.
KNOW WHEN TO DUCK:
New menus mean the prices have been hiked. Food festival? At least a 10 per cent higher bill. Daily specials on a chalkboard? You’re paying extra for novelty. Seafood as-per-size? That’s a byword for “more expensive than the other stuff”. Norwegian salmon, New Zealand chop, Iberian ham, Himalayan trout – don’t pay for an animal whose hometown you can’t prove. Stick to local produce – all the cool people in the West are doing it.
BE NICE:
Follow your favourite restaurant on Twitter, sign in with Foursquare, upload meal pics on Facebook and tag them. They’ll throw in a freebie in return. And if you get a feedback form with your bill, be specific (not rude) in your response. Put down your contact details and anniversary (a fake one coming up next month!) and give them permission to call you for further feedback. They’ll reward you with discounts and freebies.
SPLIT IT SMART: Big groups tend to split bills equally – making it cheaper for the steak eater, not the salad nibbler. Go places like Eat Around The Corner or Candies (which makes you pay when you order), or order a set meal and put down the exact amount when the bill arrives.
AND LASTLY:
Take full and shameless advantage of Restaurant Week India. Set
lunch and dinner at posh places at laughably low prices for one whole
week – so long as you can grab a spot in advance. It happens twice a
year and it’s awesome.
Restaurants often offer discounts on home delivery and takeaway. Bag your meal and drive out spending 20 per cent less than dine-ins. And always make sure that the service charge has been taken off your bill.
PICK WISELY:
Hip restaurants last only a few years. The first eight months is when it’s packed and when the servers throw attitude. The months after are when the buzz dies down and the restaurant struggles to regain it. That’s when you’re likely to get better service, better deals and better value for money.
KNOW WHEN TO DUCK:
New menus mean the prices have been hiked. Food festival? At least a 10 per cent higher bill. Daily specials on a chalkboard? You’re paying extra for novelty. Seafood as-per-size? That’s a byword for “more expensive than the other stuff”. Norwegian salmon, New Zealand chop, Iberian ham, Himalayan trout – don’t pay for an animal whose hometown you can’t prove. Stick to local produce – all the cool people in the West are doing it.
BE NICE:
Follow your favourite restaurant on Twitter, sign in with Foursquare, upload meal pics on Facebook and tag them. They’ll throw in a freebie in return. And if you get a feedback form with your bill, be specific (not rude) in your response. Put down your contact details and anniversary (a fake one coming up next month!) and give them permission to call you for further feedback. They’ll reward you with discounts and freebies.
SPLIT IT SMART: Big groups tend to split bills equally – making it cheaper for the steak eater, not the salad nibbler. Go places like Eat Around The Corner or Candies (which makes you pay when you order), or order a set meal and put down the exact amount when the bill arrives.
AND LASTLY:
Take full and shameless advantage of Restaurant Week India. Set
lunch and dinner at posh places at laughably low prices for one whole
week – so long as you can grab a spot in advance. It happens twice a
year and it’s awesome.
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