Cheap Eats

Eat to live or live to eat?  That is the age old question.  Obviously we have to eat to live.  Without food we can’t survive.  That’s basic biology.  At least I think it, Bio was never my best subject.  I mean I just recently found out where babies truly come from!! (Hint:  NOT the stork!)

Now where was I?  Oh yeah FOOD.  I LOOOOOOOOVE food.  I have always had a hefty appetite and I don’t dare deprive myself from fulfilling my cravings.  Even when I was a size 2 I could eat my parents out of house and home.  My dad would even tell the guys I dated they better make enough money to feed me (rude right? Not at all embarrassing).  If I could find a job that would pay me to eat I would!!  Seriously, how do people get jobs eating?  I want their lives!!  But even though I have had the appetite of a 500 pound sumo wrestler doesn’t mean I have liked all food. I was a very picky kid.  My idea of gourmet was Kraft mac n cheese with hot dogs and I would cry if my food touched each other.  I didn’t touch a salad until I was 18 and even now I don’t like sea food.  But I do like a lot more variety now then I used to and I try to eat new food options all the time.

A great way to try new food experiences is to go on food tours.  I didn’t even know there were such things as food tours until about a year ago, but now it is my goal in life to go on every food tour in the world (except sea food yuck!).  Food tours are a great way to find authentic restaurants and learn about a city’s history and culture.  Whether it’s going on vacation or just trying a tour in your hometown, food tours are a great way to have fun while stuffing your pie-hole.

However, if you have ever been on a food tour then you know they can be expensive.  Which is why Groupon, Living Social and Travelzoo are such great inventions (who thinks these sites should start paying me for endorsements?).  I have only been on a few food tours but I have saved quite a bit money by purchasing them on these sites and have had a lot of fun on them.

The 3 food tours I have been on were in Sacramento, San Francisco and New York.  Here’s what I paid for each versus what Rachel Ray can pay:

	What I Paid	Rachel Ray Could Pay
San Francisco	$16	$50
Sacramento	$37	$60
New York	$29	$60
Total	$82	$170

A savings of $88.  Eating for cheaper is always awesome in my blog!!

  

The San Francisco tour was in the mission district and has been the best one I’ve been on to date.  We ate pastries, pizza, cookies, papusas, falafel, and tacos.

The Sacramento tour included Thai food, gourmet sausage (who knew there was such a thing?), cupcakes, wine tasting (any food tour that offers alcohol is automatically 5 stars!), charcuterie, kale, salad, soup, Portobello fries, and more that I can’t remember.  It also included history on local artists.

The New York tour was in the West Village and even though I am madly in love with the Big Apple it wasn’t the best food tour.  We ate pizza (the best stop on the tour), bagels, cupcakes, macaroons, cannoli’s and drank coffee.

Even though the NYC tour wasn’t the best tour I would still recommend it for the pizza alone (I could live the rest of my life solely on pizza).

Being able to try all these different types of food is so much fun and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to survive.  Biology says we need to eat to survive so might as well have fun with it.  Clearly 3 food tours does not make me an expert but I will become one eventually.  As long as I avoid a scale (scales are pathological liars) I can eat all the food in the world (except sea food yuck!).

BTW, just in case you were wondering, I LOOOOOOOOVE food!!!!!!!!  I definitely live to eat!!!

Time to go find something to eat!!!