Oh, wow! I've actually eaten at that restaurant when I was in Wiesbaden. Waldgeist's a great place if you're anywhere near Frankfurt, better yet if you're stationed there. But beware the beer: just because you can order it large doesn't mean you should [0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8Liters are their sizes] From experience, two liters of beer is a lot for one meal, though fitting for 25cm burgers.

Here's another tip... order kid's meals if you can. When I eat out, it's usually only $3-4 since I get the kid's meal. The portion size is usually not even that much smaller.

On appetizers, I would beg to differ. Claim Jumper's seared Ahi tuna is a life-changing experience. A $13 life changing experience, but sometimes that's just what it costs.

Bah you left out one of the biggest money savers. Water over sodas, and DEFINATELY over any mixed drinks. Although I have a hard time following that advice, as I like a bit of soda with the meal, but with sodas inching up to 2.25-2.50 per soda, it's an easy way to save $4-$5.

Here's my personal 2 for 1 deal at places that serve large portions:

1. Ask for a to-go box with your meal.
2. Cut in half and portion into to-go box.
3. Put box to side.
4. Have remaining meal for lunch or another dinner.

Pretend to commiserate with your friends about how bloated they are after they lunchtime coma.

@Newmy: you beat me to it!

I agree with the "skip the soda/tea/alcohol" bit.. I rarely have anything besides water, unless I'm really craving it. It's too easy to default to soda/beer/tea, yet with sodas creeping to $3 a pop (pun intended) and beer about $6, it just doesn't make sense unless it's really what I want.

Smaller folks like myself would do well to avoid "value meals," too. I can finish the burger and fries, but that doesn't mean I should. Save a couple bucks when getting just the sandwich.

I'm not just talking about fast food, either. Plenty of diners by me offer "plain" or "deluxe," and the only real difference is fries.

If you and your significant other like the same foods well enough, order one entree to go.

My boyfriend and I do this very often. Most restaurants give you more than enough for two people.

@Newmy:

I imagine that'd be kinda embarrassing to do as an adult.

My husband and I split a large entree instead of ordering 2. It works great!

@mussorgsky112: 8 liters? That's like two gallons. I hope that's intended to be shared like a pitcher and that Germans don't really drink two gallons of beer at lunch.

@Newmy: My friends used to do this at a burger place called Fuddruckers. Their burgers are quite large and a few of my friends could not eat that much food. Plus the kids meal was still quite large anyway. Eventually the one location near me stopped allowing adults order kid's meals, which is ludicrous, so we stopped eating there.

@jamesdenver: That's pretty much my dining-out philosophy. Buy big and eat 2-3 times.

@jamesdenver: Seconded. You don't even have to get the box in advance (though it helps); just remind yourself that only half of the item is lunch (lots of dishes are pre-sectioned anyway) and that you're through when you've got 50% left.

My favorite restaurants are the ones with delicious free bread. Then we split a large pizza (around $10) and split a bottomless drink.

That's when we want to go out but not spend a lot of money. The waitstaff tend to dislike me, but I don't really care. We're a low maintenance table and there's no rules against being cheap!

My GF and I will often split a burger and fry basket at a place like Barney's. They're very accommodating about it too, if you indicate this before-hand. They'll bring an extra plate with an already-split burger, and its own lettuce, tomato, pickle and 1000 island sauce on it.

I particularly appreciate this level of service because Barney's is sooo successful around here that they could easily get away with providing less service. It's the kind of place we actually avoid on Thurs/Fri/Sat/Sun because the lines are too long.

It works out to something like $16 for dinner for two after tax and tip, which is VERY affordable here in NorCal.

@Raekwon: I notice most menus say on the kid's meal section "KIDS 12 AND UNDER ONLY" or some variation.

I've often wondered how much of a fuss a restaurant would give if an adult tried to order one.

I'm not a big person and I don't each much. In most cases the kid portion sizes would probably be enough for me.

@downwithmonstercable: And if that's the case, I am moving to Germany tomorrow.

@Raekwon:

Whenever I find a restaurant that refuses to serve an adult a children's meal, I order it to go. There's nothing they can say about it at that point.

Re skipping appetizers and dessert because of the huge entrees, here's another possibility: if no one else you're with is skipping a course and you prefer to have a plate of food in front of you, try ordering two appetizers, one for the first course and one in lieu of the entree.

I definitely agree on skipping appetizers and desert. Appetizers are usually too greasy and overpriced, and I usually have a better homemade dessert (homemade strawberry pie from homegrown strawberries) at home to look forward to, make for a fraction of the cost.

@GuinevereRucker: Splitting a soda might not be against the rules, but a pretty crappy move. You can't split a meal at Old Country Buffet. Sharing an entree is fine, but you don't get refills on meat and veggies.

Don't skip the appetizer, have an appetizer as your main dish, along with a side salad. Skip the entree. Usually appetizers are much more fun and tasty than some humongous plate-o-food.

@GuinevereRucker: Splitting the bottomless drink: A little iffy, there. But if you all drink out of the same glass, it's probably not so bad.

@joe18521: It's not at all embarrassing, at least in my opinion. With the drive through, they have no idea if it's for you or a kid. When I eat in, I always politely ask the server first if it's okay because I'm "on a diet". 98% of the time they say yes, but if they even hesitate for a second I tell them that it's okay and go ahead and order from the adult menu.

How about avoiding one check when going out to lunch with a group of people. We always end up splitting it evenly despite the fact that several order mixed drinks and the like. My $6 enchilada ends up costing me $11.50 with the tip.

@Kimberly Gist-Collins:

Sometimes we do that. Usually if we do that, we order 1 appetizer and 1 entree, which cuts the bill down closer to $20 instead of $30.

I am really glad they added the tipping part at the beginning. I used to have a friend who would always cheap out on the tip and embarrass the hell out of me. We do not dine together any longer.

As for filling up on the freebees, a lot of restaurants will not serve bread or chips until after you order, so make sure you have willpower...

I was surprised to not see pre-theater or prix-fixe menus mentioned. There are fantastic restaurants that will have a set menu if you come early enough. Like $30 for three courses. We've also got a few "half price wine bottle" nights in my neighborhood too, which often get me into trouble!

Also, I'd recommend trying more ethnic places. In particular vegetarian cuisines. You can usually get a killer Indian or Vietnamese dinner for just a few bucks each. The mom-&-pop places seem to have lower price points.

Taking home the bread is likely one of the most annoying practices people do at restaurants, just behind taking sugar and splenda. Although I agree that it would be better not to waste, I have had many people request more free bread just to take it home. Desserts are the biggest waste of money around and the server will appreciate you not eating dessert. A dessert course takes on average an additional 30 minutes and the sales that come from a dessert course are marginal. Therefore, a server making a wage off of tips is more inclined to push you away from a dessert in order to turn the table and get new customers looking to eat real food.

If you are looking to save money, share a plate with someone, get an appetizer as an entree, get water to drink like everyone else mentioned.

Eat early, as most restaurants offer early seating discounts. If you get a drink or a glass of wine, consider the quality factor. If you are having a mixed drink, the well booze is fine. If you are getting wine, consider the by the glass options and the prices per bottle. Often times, the bottle price for a wine poured by the glass is inflated and bottles that are only sold as bottles offer better value.

Being cheap and lacking class are very different things. We are all looking for good deals, but with that remember the people that are waiting on you are working and are trying to make a living.

JUST PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU TIP, OK?

as a waiter, i understand not having money, but we do almost entirely live off your tips. don't go out to eat if you can't afford to tip. and don't tip on an discounted price, tip on the price after tax, but before coupons.

AT LEAST 15%, but standard going rate is 20% now.

understandably, if your server is a dick or really really awful, 20% may not be appropriate. but don't stuff him cuz the kitchen staff sucks, or it took too long for a seat, or something else not related to their actual interactions with you. thank you.

@Saboth: Good point. It's absolutely ridiculous how expensive sodas are now, especially if you're someone (like me) who doesn't drink enough to get a refill. Water it is... either that or sneaking a sip from my hubby's soda.

Really? This needed an article written about it? Really?

Another good tip is eat during happy hours. There's a place near my house called Jake's that has their happy hour from 2-5pm, and from (I think) 9-close in which they offer $5 appetizers. Their appetizers are HUGE, most of them are bigger than actual meals.

So if you don't mind an early or late dinner, especially if you're meeting people, try taking advantage of happy hours.

@GuinevereRucker:

I agree that sharing a bottomless drink is kinda shady.

Appetizers! I've been begging my wife for years. No more freakin appetizers. They're ridiculous now. $10 for a meal before a meal!?!

Chains are noticing the dessert thing. Many are taking a lead from Houlihans and offering individual portion (or mini) esserts for $2.00 or so (I know Applebee's is doing dessert "shooters). Healthier and cheaper. I dig it.

"Eat Out And Save"?
Are you saying the normal alternative won't cost me a case of chips?

@HiPwr: Let me guess, the people wanting to split evenly are those who ordered the mixed drinks?

I typically use a coupon of some sort every time I go out to eat. I have a Yahoo mail account that I use just for signing up for email discount offers. I'm signed up for the restaurants I go to regularly and often get $5 off or BOGO Free coupons.

I'm also a fan of working the e-clubs and coupons. I pretty much only dine out if I have a coupon. O'Charley's and TGIF's are some of the better chains with regard to couponing. I sign up multiple yopmail accounts, then when I want to dine out, I check my accounts and there's almost always a coupon sitting in one of them.

Add to this list: Don't drink anything but water. Soda and alcohol come with a nice 200-1,000% mark up, so have your cocktails at home.

@Saboth: Or to be more realistic, if you do get an alcoholic drink, make it count.

I like to order martinis because they are quite strong and tasty. Even if it's a $10-$12 martini at some trendy bar, you're still only paying $2-$2.50/shot of top shelf alcohol. (Not that top shelf always makes a huge difference.) That's about what you pay for rail shots at crappy college hangouts.

If I feel like drinking beer or wine I just stay home because it's a ripoff at bars. Even ridiculous $1 pitcher specials are a ripoff because they always use terrible watery beer.

Half of those "tips" seem to come down to: "You'll save money if you don't order as many things." Do people really need to be told that?

@joe18521: Ditto. It's not intended for sharing, just like you can't go into an all-you-can-eat buffet and share a plate between four people. If you're not willing to pay the price that the restaurant charges for its drinks, drink water. There is a difference between frugal and outright cheap.

I hope you at least tip well, but at that point you might as well have shelled out for the individual glasses, huh?

@GuinevereRucker: I would be a little concerned about going out to eat where the waitstaff tend to dislike me... You do know that these people touch your food, yes?
Also, as a server, I would definitely charge you for the extra drink. If you're making me refill it 4, 5, 6 times to save you $2, that's definitely a dick move and you deserve to pay the correct amount. Especially since people like that tend to tip horribly anyway, it would be worth it to me to sacrifice my tip to show you that your game isn't gonna work with me.

@Saboth: I alllllways drink water when I go out. Saves money and calories/sugar!

@HiPwr: I don't go places in groups if I know the place won't do separate checks. Some place by my school has pretty pricey lunches, and we've gone in groups and they wouldn't split the check. One of us'll end up putting it on a card and then the others will owe him/her later on (not everyone carries cash).

The waitresses always say they're "not allowed" - why wouldn't they be allowed? To save receipt tape? Laziness is more like it I think. Even if we ask ahead of time, though, they still say that. So I try to steer our group away from eating there.

@jaya9581: I do that as well, because "adult-sized" meals are just too gigantic. However, once at a French bakery, this practice caused such a fuss that the staff in the back poked their heads out to see the grown woman ordering a child's meal. They wouldn't let me get a grilled cheese otherwise, and all I wanted was a grilled cheese with tomato soup!