How to Save Money While Dining Out

Dining out can be expensive. Some spend hundreds, if not thousands per year on meals alone! Here's how to enjoy dining in Restaurants without going broke.

1. Look Before you Tip! Automatic gratuity is common at many restaurants, especially for larger groups or parties. Don't shortchange yourself by double tipping! Always look to see if a tip has been added before adding it in.

2. Coupons are your Friend-Use them whenever possible. You can usually find them online saving up to 50% of your bill, or in other places like the Entertainment book, newspaper coupons etc. Some people feel silly pulling them out or even cheap, but in today's economy I assure you nobody will look down on you for wanting to save a little money.

3. Go Family Style-Sharing dishes is not only a tradition in many countries, but with larger portions, it is the perfect way to share with friend(s) or family. This way you get to try a little bit of everything and discover your favorite dishes, without the price to match.

4. Share Dessert! Sometimes you want something a little sweet to cleanse the palate after your dinner but aren't sure you want to drop $6 on one. Sharing a dessert amongst 2-4 people will not only save you money, but the extra calories too! It's a great way to enjoy the finer things without feeling guilty afterward.

5. Insist on a Separate Bill- Many people enjoy eating in large groups but when the bill comes a few people always wind up putting in a little more for those that didn't put in enough, to ensure the bill is paid with a suitable tip. An easy way to avoid overpaying it to request your own bill. You can also control the tip based on your specific experience.

6. Avoid the Alcohol! There is no faster way to drive up the check than to order alcohol. Sure it's social but why not have a drink before heading out of the house. Instead, drink water with lemon a refillable drink like iced tea or coffee. You will notice a dramatic reduction in your restaurant bills if you change this ONE thing!

7. Save Room for your Entrée-Skip appetizers when you can, or share one or two with another person/couple to try out different items. Most people's eyes are bigger than their stomach, so to speak. They feel so hungry when they order that they order too much and often feel stuffed by the second bite of their entrée. However, if you order an entrée only and are still hungry afterward, then order more food at that point. If you absolutely must, share an appetizer, it is just as fulfilling.

8. Extra Sauce is Extra Cost! With the increase in grocery items these days, so too comes the increase for restaurants, and believe me, they WILL pass that cost onto you when it comes to the little extras. If you want extra sauce or dressing, many eateries are adding those costs onto your bill, the $2 and $3 here and there starts to add up.

9. Share your Celebration- Tell your server what you're celebrating. Many servers will even ask you if you're celebrating a special evening etc. Often, especially for birthdays, you might snag a free dessert, a discount etc. It's worth it and it doesn't cost you a thing.

10. Speak Up- Places like Starbucks are notorious for letting their customer switch up their drink if they don't like it. Well, the same holds true for restaurants. Let your server know that you are dissatisfied and why. If they don't offer it up, tell them you'd like to return it to the kitchen but would instead like to have the "x" dish. There is no sense paying for a meal that you don't enjoy. If it's just a matter of food being overly well done etc, they will in some cases comp it on your bill or at least provide a discount all while replacing it with a new meal.

11. Save money by always bringing your leftovers home. You may not want to think of another bite while you're at the restaurant but leftovers can turn into a snack or tomorrow's lunch. So, why not save on your grocery cost by bringing home whatever there is left over, no matter how small the portion may seem. After all, you did pay for it!

12. Happy Hour! Many restaurants offer happy hour, and we're not just talking greasy wings at the bar kind of happy hour. Many sushi and other restaurants offer certain times and weekdays (usually between 4-7pm) where a variety of meals are offered at discounted rates or even half price! Use this to your advantage and head to a restaurant after work to catch these great deals. Also note that lunch is always cheaper than dinner!

Florida Home Staging & Redesign, Inc., is a company that specializes in Vacation Rental and Model Home Property Design. We provide professional services resulting in beautiful and timeless homes spaces. We work within all budgets to provide the results of your dreams.

We service the Disney rental communities including Kissimmee, Davenport, Haines City, Clermont and the surrounding Orlando area. Owner, Karla Davis, is a notable speaker praised for her exciting and informative seminars, and has been interviewed on radio shows nationwide. She was also a Featured Speaker at the Orlando Home Show.

Let Florida Home Staging & Redesign, Inc., do all the hard work for you! We have the resources, the designer discounts, and the expertise to make your home spectacular! Staging is the key to getting spectacular photos online, which is the key ingredient in selling any rental home. Our homes are cozy but contemporary and truly allow for that perfect dream Disney Vacation.

Contact Karla:

Karla Davis
Florida Home Staging & Redesign, Inc.
Home Staging Specialist/Designer
Tel. (407) 864-7535
Karla@FloridaHomeStager.com
http://www.FloridaHomeStager.com

http://TheClassyWoman.blogspot.com

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FaceCard Prepaid MasterCard - Review

Facecard prepaid MasterCard is a debit card. This means you must deposit money on it and then you can use it to make purchases.

To load it you must deposit $10 or more, with a maximum balance of $2500. You can load money through bank transfers and with their ACH network at no charge. Other methods are available but at a fee.

It is frequently used by parents to help teach financial responsibility to a child. Parents can access all of their childs' account information.

There is free activation and no monthly fees. There is a $1.50 ATM fee from Facecard plus the banks' ATM fee.

There is a maximum of $200 a day that can be withdrawn from the ATM. Additionally you can only load money; 2 times per day, 4 times per week, 10 times per month.

We mildly suggest this card because unless you wanting to monitor your childs' spending it doesn't provide many benefits.

Additionally this card can be used internationally; however I would not count on it in a financial emergency. This is because you can only withdraw $200 a day at the ATM.

It is issued by Meta Bank and as a MasterCard. It is accepted everywhere you see the MasterCard logo.

They do have one unique benefit if you go out to a restaurant and are short on money you card will still be approved. It will also approve you for an additional 20% so you can leave a tip.

The way they are able to offer no monthly charges fees, is because they will market offers to your cell phone. What this means is that you will get text messages from them telling you that you can save 10% at a specific retailer during a specific time.

In sum the Facecard does have some advantages, however because of their low ATM withdraw maximum of only $200 a day we suggest you have an additional card.

It is common for people to experience financial emergencies; additionally $200 is rarely enough money to cover that emergency. If you have a student away at college it is not enough money to pay for their textbooks.

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Combining Financial Products for Starting a Business

When you want to start a business, it is sometimes difficult to raise the money you need to pay for all the expenses associated with such a process. A new business project is always expensive and almost always you’ll need finance in order to afford it. However, it is possible to combine different loan products in order to finance a business and thus overcome credit and high amount loan approval difficulties.

If your business is not able to obtain financing on itself, you can resort to personal financing. Though personal financing doesn’t always provide the amounts needed for such projects, you can combine different loan products and other financial products like credit cards and store cards in order to obtain all the financing you need to get started.

Unsecured Loans And Credit Cards

By combining unsecured loans and credit cards you can raise enough money in order to finance your business when you can’t apply for a secured form of financing due to lack of collateral. This combination can aid you get funds for common expenses that you can pay with the money obtained from the loan and you can purchase particular goods and equipment with credit card taking advantage of those special promotions that most stores have. This includes of course, store credit cards that are particularly useful for this purpose.

The only problem with this combination is the fact that both unsecured loans and credit cards are expensive forms of financing and thus, it is always preferable to resort to cheaper sources of funds. However, sometimes it is possible to take advantage of special promotions like 0% APR promotional periods or subsidized rates for particular purchases, etc.

Secured Line Of Credit And Unsecured Loans Or Credit Cards

A Home Equity Line of Credit is an excellent tool for financing your business everyday expenses and cash flow. A home equity line of credit is a revolving source of funds with a credit limit that is guaranteed with the equity on a property. Up to the amount determined in the line of credit contract, you can withdraw as much money as you need and repay it the way you want with minimum payments consistent usually only of interests.

Home equity lines of credit provide a lot of flexibility in terms of financing for your business and they constitute a cheap source of funds. However, you should use them for everyday expenses or unexpected expenses as those situations are the ones where you will take more advantage of these financial tools.

For financing the purchase of particular equipment like computers, printers, scanners, etc. you can resort to unsecured loans or unsecured credit cards that can provide you with an additional and alternative source of funds. Credit cards can provide you with special offers at stores and unsecured personal loans can be obtained in the very store you purchase the item so the store will finance your purchase. This will liberate your home equity line of credit from financing expensive equipment and will leave more credit available for unexpected expenses and everyday cash flow difficulties.

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