Food Budget - What Are You Eating?

[svBeBe]

Spent the past year in eastern Med, cruising Turkey and Greece and wintering in Cyprus. Two people on board full-time, with 2 children visiting for the summer and 2 adult guests for 3 weeks of summer. We eat whatever appeals to us in any given location. Average spent on food consumed onboard was $532 USD per month. Restaurant meals are not included in this total. Most meals are eaten onboard; probably eat at restaurant for dinner twice per month and for lunch 3 times per month.

Between May 2006 and May 2011 we cruised the Caribbean, across Pacific, New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India and Maldives. Average monthly food cost was $529 USD.

So our experience has been that it doesn't really matter where you are located geographically, if you continue to eat the type foods you usually enjoy then the costs will average the same amount.

Beer and wine purchases are included in the food costs. My husband drinks 2 beers daily; I do not touch the stuff. And we enjoy a bottle of wine every couple of weeks or so or when other cruisers visit for sundowners.

Judy

[Free Agent]

Beef has gone up 25% here on the West Coast from an already high price.
COSTCO sells a bag of 6 lean Tri Tips for about 30% less than the two packs.
They freeze nicely.
Coat them with mustard, then margarita salt, roast for an hour,, amazing flavor.

Baby back ribs are still reasonable and I buy 3 racks at a time from COSTCO.
Barbecue them 20 minutes on a side, separate them to indiv ribs, then dip them in sauce and crock pot them for 3 hours on low.
They freeze nicely too.

Bread: COSTCO has 2 huge loaves for about the price of one every place else.
Buns as well, and the big 30 packs of hamburger patties are a good deal too.
It all freezes.

[Blue Crab]

So, all I do is dinghy ashore. Lock the dink to a palm tree, and ask a local:
"Donde es Costco?"

Bueno

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Blue Crab

So, all I do is dinghy ashore. Lock the dink to a palm tree, and ask a local:
"Donde es Costco?"

Bueno

Bueno ...

U kan akso by yurselv ej dikshioneri and luk ap da fraze der. Languagez ar importynt whyn tryvelling!

¿Donde esta (el) Costco? (if you know there is one in vicinity)
¿Hay (un) Costco por aqui? (if you are not sure there is one)

Un abrzo,
barnie

[barnakiel]

My wild guess. I never took classes.

;-)
b.

[Blue Crab]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Bueno ...

U kan akso by yurselv ej dikshioneri and luk ap da fraze der. Languagez ar importynt whyn tryvelling!

¿Donde esta (el) Costco? (if you know there is one in vicinity)
¿Hay (un) Costco por aqui? (if you are not sure there is one)

Un abrzo,
barnie

As always, you're way ahead of me barnie. I know the beginning question mark was, eh... como se deci, inverted, pero I don't sabe how to type it that way.

maise de pop?

[barnakiel]

Take it easy ;-)

Just: "Costco? Costco?" solves the problem. Language is about communication, not about grammar.

b.

[barnakiel]

PS Symbols not available from your keyboard can be pasted from any text googled up/ opened in another tab.

b.

[ausaviator]

In Australia, a single standard sized T-Bone costs $5-$6 at the local supermarket.

[Blue Crab]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

PS Symbols not available from your keyboard can be pasted from any text googled up/ opened in another tab.

b.

Gracias. Yo estoy muy baja technologica!

I'm also still enjoying using this clever gizmo.

[zeehag]

in la cruz de huanacaxtle, nayarit, mexico, there is a wonderful carniceria(meat market that sells wonderful meats for CHEEP -- much less than costco , and not having to buy the whole cow.possibility rather than go to costco mexico which is slightly different than costco usa.
you may wish to look into that -- also many places in mexico do not have costco here. have to make loooong trippage to find one .....
i am paying 40-50 pesos for a LARGE filet mignon when i buy them. peso is 12.5 or so for one dollar.

[barnakiel]

I do not know the costco / mexico nuances. But if you ever go to Brazil do NOT miss their beef. Man it was delicious. And I am a vegetarian. (Well, most of the time I am.).

b.

[deckofficer]

Originally Posted by zeehag

in la cruz de huanacaxtle, nayarit, mexico, there is a wonderful carniceria(meat market that sells wonderful meats for CHEEP -- much less than costco , and not having to buy the whole cow.possibility rather than go to costco mexico which is slightly different than costco usa.
you may wish to look into that -- also many places in mexico do not have costco here. have to make loooong trippage to find one .....
i am paying 40-50 pesos for a LARGE filet mignon when i buy them. peso is 12.5 or so for one dollar.

Well that does it for me. 45 pesos = $3.43, so T-bone is on the menu big time for me in Mexico. Mainland carne beats Baja carne hands down.

[zeehag]

baja beef NEEDS flavorings added--here beef has wonderful flavor -- even better than i have seen in so cal of late.

hurry here-- i will buy a bbq....

[deckofficer]

Originally Posted by zeehag

baja beef NEEDS flavorings added--here beef has wonderful flavor -- even better than i have seen in so cal of late.

It not only needs flavoring but tenderizing too. Pretty tough and stringy if it was an adult cow butchered and not a calf. A group of us cruisers had a calf butchered for a fund raiser for the town of Muluge's potable water system. This is why I like the out of the way cruise destinations, I'm much too old to give a damn about a hot night life scene, and mixing with the locals socially, as in fund raisers and soccer (as a spectator) suits me fine.