7 Ways To Save Loads Of Money When Eating Out

You could eat out every night of the week, and still not have been everywhere in Dubai; there are definitely enough restaurants, bars and cafés in Dubai to try it.

But the main issue is cost. Being on a limited budget, there are some places in Dubai we’d like to try for the first time that are understandably pretty expensive.

Well here are some of the tricks we’ve been employing so far to try and save money.

1. Look for deals

Websites like Groupon, and apps like The Entertainer have a constant supply of restaurant coupons which could conceivably cut your costs in half.

The only downside is these vouchers usually apply to two people or more so it can be annoying if you’re #goingsolo. They are also usually time-limited so make sure to use them before they go out of date.

2. Follow your favourite restaurants on social

Not every restaurant has a good social presence, but the ones that do will often advertise whatever deal they’re running, whether that’s half-price cocktails, a new set menu or a one-day only offer. Then you can take advantage of temporary offers by being the first to know.

3. Go for lunch

Because most people work Monday to Friday and often won’t take their full hour for lunch, restaurants will be quite quiet during this period. 

As a result, they do some fantastic deals. Even on weekends the lunch menu will be much less expensive than at dinner. By eating earlier you can save a lot of money.

4. Eat family style

Chances are you aren’t really hungry enough to have a full three-course meal.

What I often do with mates is get a starter and a dessert to share and our own mains, or even have one main, like a large pizza, to share.

5. Skip the cocktails

I love cocktails. But with the average cocktail price in Dubai coming in at about AED50, having them all night can quickly rack up a huge final bill.

As a result, I try to save cocktails as an after-dinner treat or limit myself to two total.

6. Look for the deal nights

To get more clientele in early in the week, many Dubai restos will offer deals Sun-Tue in an aim to get bums on seats. 

Jazz at Pizza Express (in JLT) runs a Monday night 2-for-1 pizza deal, ladies’ nights often do food packages with heavily discounted bites, and Crab Tavern in Media One even does an all-you-can-eat (and drink) package for AED200 a head on Friday nights. 

7. Get it to go

A lot of the deals and set menus that restaurants offer require you to have two or three courses. But often you’ll already feel pretty full after the starter.

If that’s the case, and half of your main course is still sitting there, you should ask to bring the rest home. It means less food is wasted and you have your lunch sorted for tomorrow. You’re saving money already.

Know any other tricks for saving money? Let us know in the comments below.