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Rice to Riches – The Feed Yourself Challenge
Maybe this has been said before: “Cheapness is the mother of invention.”
It’s been years since my five-dollar budget. I like lingering over a long meal with friends. Sometimes, I get super lazy and pick up something prepared and eat it out of the plastic compartment. And even as finances have grown tight, I’ve been more likely to treat myself to evenings out to lift my low spirits and pick up cheap indulgences as if stuffing myself with a rich dinner would magically fill my bank account.
The Upside of the Dow’s Turn
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell to a six-year low yesterday and has sunk lower today, which would seem to be bad news any way you cut it. Even smart equity bargain-hunters we know are staying away, saying they have no feel for where the bottom of the market is.
There are small (very small) advantages to a down index, though. Restaurants and bars around the country have tied their prices to the stock market as a recession marketing tool. You’ve probably stopped checking your 401(k) balance, but on days when you know it’s taken a dive, you can drown your sorrows in cheap food and drink. Caveat: Since most of these joints are trying to drum up business during off-hours, you might have to start as trading ends.
Cookin’ for Love: Satisfaction Stew
You’ve been stripped of your big office, fat title, hot assistant and, most important, your paycheck. But being emasculated on the job doesn’t mean you can’t satisfy your significant other at home—with food.
On the Home Depot scale, cooking something impressive and tasty falls somewhere in between changing a light bulb and installing a new shower head—that is, pretty simple. Some quick rules for the new house husband, and a 20-minute recipe:
For Valentine’s Day, Fudge It
As a complete sap, I’ve always found Valentine’s Day annoying: why designate only one day a year to romance? This year, that designated day is under more stress than usual: you can barely imagine splurging on something nice to wear to a dinner out, much less $65 on a few dozen red roses.
Homemade gifts might make you wince, but not all such crafts need be as hokey as the cut-out heart card you made for your mom when you were a kid. We have something you can make in 15 minutes, for under $15, that doesn’t involve a doily or anything else cheesy.
Downturn Deals: Dining’s ‘Winter Specials’
Now appearing discreetly in leather-bound menus all over New York City: “winter specials,” which offer five-star dining at surprisingly reasonable prices.
We all know they’re just dressed-up “recession specials,” but upscale eateries don’t seem ready to embrace the R word yet. That’s fine. Whatever you want to call them, here are five of the best high-end meal deals in Manhattan.
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