Post Bar Foods You Can Make Yourself

I started to realize this year especially that more than 50% of the money I take with me downtown ends up going towards post bar foods.  This covers everything from poutine to pita pit. I’m not recommending not eating after a night out, because it definitely helps. Instead I’m of course going to talking about a way to lower these costs so you can buy more alcohol or save some cash for

your next night out.

So here are a few options for a nice post bar snack that can save you some money and ease the morning hangover.

Grilled Cheese

A serious classic, with a nice mix of carbs and grease and it’s easy to make. The less intricate the cooking the better is what always works the best. Go with a basic cheese and bread or add meat, tomatoes, veggies or whatever else works for you.

Nachos

Now these can be made with tortilla chips or crackers if you have them (triscuits often work well too). You can either grate cheese or just cut it up. Throw on some salsa and put it in the microwave for a minute or so.

Mac and cheese

Always a classic option post bar. It’s hard to mess up, just try to avoid burning yourself. If your scared just buy kd cups instead, just add water and nuke them throw in the cheese mix.

Mini pizzas
You can make these with any sort of bread but the best options are with English muffins or pitas. Either grate or slice cheese, and use pasta sauce or pizza sauce, whatever you have on hand. Either microwave or put it in the oven to cook. You can add toppings including cold cuts, pepperoni or vegetables. Whatever you have lying around works.

Pasta with Red Sauce or Pesto
Boil up some pasta and then once your done just dump in pesto or red sauce from the fridge and stir, easy and tasty.

I hope these help you save some cash and ease those morning hangovers.

For those who like to plan ahead. You can always save some leftovers from dinner or make something awesome to heat up late at night.

What do you eat after the bar?

Cheap Eats: Part 1

After living in the city of Guelph, Ontario for the last 4 years and being here for 12 months straight I realized that I had really not taken advantage of the wide variety of restaurants available within the city. I had previously stuck to chain restaurants or cooked at home, with the cooking at home always being a great cheap alternative. But I realized I wanted something more, and there definitely is a great way to do it without spending a ton of money (and local restaurants are most often cheaper or have better food at a comparable price to chains). I’m sure many people can relate, but just for another city. I feel almost the same way when it comes to places I’ve tried out in Toronto (where I’m originally from).

So the only real option was to start testing out local non-chain restaurants within the city and there were a few ways that I did it, and the first topic, mobile apps will be covered all about how I found some cheap eats.

There are quite a few mobile apps that are great sources of information in order to find restaurants you may never have heard of and/or find out reviews for the restaurants in order to make a better restaurant choice.

  • Urban Spoon- Has a list of top picks, restaurants that are highly rated in your city (based on your location) as well as a break down of restaurants by price. With a section called “Cheap Eats”
  • Street Food App- If you have an interest in something different than a restaurant, check out the Street Food App, which provides food truck locations for Boston, Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver. Choose your app based on the city you live.
  • Foursquare- It may not be the first thing you think of when someone suggests food. But foursquare is an excellent source for recommendations as well as check in deals when going to some restaurants. Some restaurants even offer special bonuses for location mayors.
  • Yelp-Check out this app for restaurant reviews as well, similar to Urban Spoon.
  • Groupon- and other daily deal sites. You can download the app, or check out their websites but you can often find great deals for local restaurants by purchasing daily deals.
By checking out these free apps you are able to find deals as well as discover new restaurants and read reviews to get the best bang for your buck.
What other apps do you use to find great restaurant deals?