When it comes to food, the costs keep getting higher and higher. This isn’t only seen in the grocery stores, but also really takes a hit when it comes to local restaurant food costs as well. Your favourite dish may go up by a few bucks because everyone is trying to keep up with the cost of food. So how can you be prepared for to fork over the extra dough? Whether it’s eating out or grocery shopping, we let you know how you can be prepared when you start to see bigger price tags on your delicious items.
Know Your Prices
When it comes to eating out or grocery shopping the best way to be prepared to spend your money is to know what items should be costing you. This comes back to doing your research and monitoring your spending so you know how much you’ve paid for items in the past, so you don’t start overpaying for them going forward. Food prices are bound to rise, but a report by CBC discusses how prices have increased at the wholesale level, but so far, the full impact of those hikes haven’t been felt at the retail level. But that can’t go on forever, the report says.
Watch For Sales
Those weekly flyers come in handy, especially when you’re looking for food ideas and to score some great sales. You can even find these flyers online, or always have them with you with apps like Flipp. These are some of the easiest and obvious ways to save money, but there are also great in-store offers and coupons to look out for when shopping that can help you save. Our other favourite tip about certain grocery stores is that they price match. That’s right, if you find something on sale at one store, but don’t want to make multiple trips, these grocery stores will price match and let you get that same product for the on sale price. These are the kinds of places you should always grocery shop at to get the best bang for your buck!
Dining Out
When it comes to restaurant deals, restaurants don’t really have sales, but more features rotating all the time with different menu changes. Most restaurants have daily specials to try out new dishes and may even participate in food events like Summerlicious. But it’s inevitable that if food prices are going up, that means menu prices are too since restaurants need to make their money and then some. So when it comes to dining out, try and look for the deal of the day if you’re trying to make it easier on your bank account, or limit yourself to certain items or the number of times you go out instead.
You may not realize how much you’re saving by purchasing items that are on sale, by price matching or by using coupons, but those dollars and cents add up quicker than you would think.
