Dining Out in Retirement

Dining out in retirement is one of our great pastimes.  We’ve always liked to eat out and really appreciate a restaurant with great food, excellent service and reasonable prices.  You can still find places like that and, if you do, you should go there as often as possible to keep them in business.  There are not too many more difficult businesses to run than restaurants.  Their impact on the economy is far greater than most people realize because of all the suppliers that make up the food chain.  We appreciate a well-run restaurant more than we ever did.

Among senior groups, the conversation always turns to restaurants and there is always a buzz when a new one opens up nearby.  Owners and chefs get huge reputations, and some are followed like little media stars.  We live about an hour away from the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Hyde Park and their graduates are sprinkled around the Hudson Valley.  It’s always a plus when you see the CIA on the resume of either the chef or the owner of a restaurant.  Two of our favorites are Jesse’s Harvest House up the mountain in Tannersville and Chez Mike’s in East Greenbush just outside of Albany.  But there are others around and not all of the great chefs or owners have to have culinary degrees.  Some just like to cook and it shows in their great food and varied menus.  There are even some retirees who went into the restaurant business after their first careers.  Some have small food trucks that they run on weekends and one person we know has a pop-up smoker and barbecue operation that he runs every Friday and Saturday night near a brewery.

Dining out in retirement has taught us that the quieter pace of a weeknight can sometimes be more enjoyable than the hustle and bustle of the weekends.  Although it’s the most popular dining day of the year, we never eat out on Mother’s Day.  With money sometimes at a premium in retirement, why spend more money on rushed food and less than stellar service that has become the norm in some places?  We like the quieter times and have become big fans of Happy Hours.  It’s not because we’re drinkers (although I like wine as much as anyone), but because of the reduced prices especially on appetizers.  We have been known to have a dinner of just appetizers and love the restaurants that offer smaller portions for their entrees.

When we travel during the winter, my wife keeps a journal of where we eat each day and a note on what we had if we especially liked something.  We definitely have our favorites.  We’ve started leaving reviews on Trip Advisor for some of the places that are exceptional.  It’s my practice to only leave a good review and I do it almost as a “thank you” note for a job well-done along with a generous tip.  If you’ve ever worked in a restaurant, you know what a hard job it is.  Unfortunately, there are some diners who treat the staff like servants rather than like people.  Yes, you are paying them to do a job, but a little kindness works wonders.

Dining out in Retirement is one of Life's Great Pleasures.

The pleasures of dining out in retirement are so good, there are even vacations and cruises now that are focused on the food.  It’s absolutely one of the best ways to get to know what a country is all about.  Local restaurants are always a learning experience. We were in Madrid on our own and could not understand why every restaurant was closed when we got hungry at four o’clock.  The streets were busy with parents and their strollers but there were no restaurants open.  It was our first experience with the time-honored tradition of a siesta.  We were also a little startled by the hams and full fishes in some of the windows and weren’t quite sure about what to order.  It was one of those teaching moments when we learned about the wisdom of hiring a guide.  Two years later, during our trip to Rome, our guide escorted us to a restaurant known by the locals and used as a backdrop in movies, and we feasted on different appetizers, wines, pastas and then a shrimp entrée.  It was delightful and, because we were part of a group and everything was pre-arranged, it cost us almost half of what we would have spent on our own and we got more food and wine than you can imagine.  A good guide is well worth the money, and it is their business to know the best places.

Another thing we learned was that there are many benefits to dining out in retirement if you do a little research.  For example, there are restaurant groups that own a number of places and you can become a frequent diner and get great discounts.  We also benefit by using a credit card that gets us airline points, and they can mount up pretty quickly. The point is that dining out can bring that experience to a new level.  Getting points and discounts seems to add to the enjoyment of one life’s great pleasures – a wonderful meal with friends in a lovely restaurant.  Start researching the possibilities.  It’s time to Enjoy Retired Life! 

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