When there is a whole world of various cuisines waiting outside our door, it is truly hard to head to the kitchen and cook a meal from scratch, especially now since you can get almost all kinds of stuff delivered to your doorsteps! Though most of us realize the importance of eating healthy and cooking at home, the lure of eating out is just too much. A pizza takes just 20 minutes to get delivered, whereas if you want to cook something, you would need at least two hours. At a time when all we want is to save up, sometimes it is truly a hard choice to make.

At the same time, you can't really deny the importance of eating healthy and having low carb, low sugar, and less preservatives in your food. It has been found that an average American household spends about $3000 a year on dining out. If it is surprising for you, let us tell you that small costs that recur over a period of time can add up to that amount. So here are some tips that will help you stop spending too much on eating out.

Eat In

Of course, this is easier said than done. As explained before, time crunch and the convenience of eating out or ordering from outside win over here. But if you are determined to cook at home, you can cook or at least pre-cook a few things and store them in your fridge for future use. But even before that, what's needed is meal planning. This is especially beneficial for those who want to lose weight and are aiming for a balanced diet. Plan for the whole week, and you can definitely add a few slots for eating out or ordering as well if it suits your budget. The best part is you can avoid that $10 lunch you buy every day but carrying your leftovers from home. This means you will be saving about $50 a week or $200 a month! Now, if that is not exciting, what is?

Choose Takeaway Or Self-Service Places

Order food to go or choose a place where it offers self-service. This essentially means you will have a lot less to pay for your bill than usual. You will also save on giving tips. Also, when you are not sitting in the restaurant and eating, there is a chance that you might order a lot less. For example, if you want to eat to have lasagne, you will end up ordering a salad and a glass of wine with it, but if you do a take-out, you won't need the wine and salad. As for self-serve or quick serve places, you've got to choose carefully so that you keep the health factor in mind, too. We really don't want to encourage you to have a BigMac or a burger every day!

Don't Waste Food Or Order More Than You Need

Even if you eat out, make it a point to not waste food — take the leftovers home. If the entrees are too big, why not share it with a friend? Splitting meals will help you cut the cost in half as well. On the other hand, if you take the leftovers home, you won't have to buy food for lunch the next day. Another good way to cut your restaurant bills is by skipping the drinks. Think of it, do you really need that can of soda? It is full of too much sugar and other harmful stuff, normal drinking water is far better. Skip the bottled ones and go for tap water, at least that's what the doctors say!

Take Advantage Of Coupons And Card Discounts

Finally, do your own research and don't waste those tons of coupons you get via mail or emails. Keep them and see if some of them are good for you; even if you can save $5 on a meal, that would be great. Also, there are several credit card companies that would give you cash back when you dine out. Find out which cards have the best offers and get them!

Ideally though, if you can limit your eating out altogether or at least, have a monthly budget for it and stick to it, you will be saving a lot. Not only will you have great health but stable finances, too. Now, who can say no to that?