The Cost of Fine Dining

[kitchensqueen]

For me, I've likely not been 'fine dining' - you know, a place where prices aren't printed on the menu. If we're going somewhere out of budget, we save and/or trade priorites. We don't have kids or a mortgage, so that tradeoff is relatively easy for us.

[Kent Wang]

Cultivate a network of friends that live (or will live) in places you'd like to visit.

[tupac17616]

Cultivate a network of friends that live (or will live) in places you'd like to visit.

This is so key.

[HungryC]

Brown-bagging can save $25-$50 per work week; money much better spent on travel or good food than on mediocre turkey sandwiches or tired salads from the corner deli. [ETA: ditching the coffee-house habit helps, too.]

Edited May 27, 2009 by HungryC (log)

[slkinsey]

I suspect that most of the people you wonder about had much less disposable income when they were 25. I certainly did.

On the flip side of this, it is difficult to overstate the amount of disposable income a 25 year old first year associate at a major law firm can have. It's true that law firms are cutting lawyers and cutting salaries, but it is still the case that an unmarried 25 year old lawyer in NYC can be making $150,000 a year before bonus. After you finish making accellerated payments on your huge student loans and paying the astronomical rent on your super-swanky Manhattan apartment, you've still got a LOT of money left over for fancy dinners. There are other industries for which similar economics are at work (although less now than 2 years ago, of course).

[kalypso]

That said, if anyone's ever in San Diego and wants a good meal, let me know. French Laundry it is not, but you won't be disappointed.

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Where?

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I'd be interested in hearing the answer to this one as well.