re: How often did your family go "out to eat" at a restaurant when you were a kid?

I was from a family of five. Mom and dad cooked on school nights. Maybe once a month, we would eat at Cortana Mall’s Piccadilly or at Shakey’s pizza.

Once I turned 16 and worked part-time at Winn Dixie, I would grab a whopper and fries on my lunch break.

My dad loved to cook many items and Sundays were the day we had a very robust Sunday Meal like roast and potatoes.

As a kid: Once every two months sit down restaurant. Once a month fast food.

Now: Sit down twice a month.

Fast food twice a month.

A few times a week to Wackarnolds man

We always went to
Western Sizzeler
Locally Mexican Mexican Place on the Expressway
The chines on expressway & eventually China Doll
Ground Patty on Expressway lol
The Bounty at the Lakefront when I was young, almost every Saturday or Sunday we’d go.
Deanies Seafood in Bucktown (fried platters were the best & fried artichoke hearts)
Went there most weekends after Saints games, line out the doors.

When I think about it, my fam always dined our growing up, but we also cooked a lot at home. Was a hood upbringing by my parents.

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Very very rare. It was either Pizza Hut or the local catfish/seafood place.

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A lot of people my age (44) probably remember Pizza Hut giving out gift certificates for a 'personal pan pizza' if you made the honor roll and what a big deal it was at the time. My school went so far as to provide transportation and a chaperone to Pizza Hut for a night after every grading period. Going to that pizza party was big shite in 5th grade and the kids that didn't go were legit jealous.

Point being, kids today wouldn't give a shite about that promotion because they've eaten pizza multiple times a week their entire lives.

McDonald's used to be huge for birthday parties because it was a big treat for all us kids. Can you imagine hosting a 7 yo's birthday at McDonald's today? You'd be a laughing stock because dinner at McDonald's today is the equivalent of Hamburger Helper night for kids in the 80's and earlier.

On Sunday pretty much every week of my life we would meet up with my grandparents and great uncle and aunt at Piccadilly.

Rarely, but my mom didn’t work. I think it was less of an income thing and more of a roles and responsibilities thing.

We would order pizza from Sicily’s Pizza every Friday evening. Circa early 90’s.

It was located at the corner of Florida Blvd and Monterrey Blvd. Every now and then we would get a booth and eat there.

I still remember a $20 bill would cover 2 large pizzas and a good tip.

Maybe one Sunday per month, if we were lucky!

When I was a kid, we’d go to Gadsden almost every Saturday and do the same thing

1. Go to Kmart where my bother and I would get a toy. He’d usually get something lame or stupid that he’d end up breaking immediately anyway. I’d get something awesome and cool like a Star Wars figure or a model kit that I’d take good care of.

2. Go to lunch at either Wendy’s, McDonalds, or Captain Ds. Sometimes we’d eat lunch in the cafeteria at Kmart.

3. Mom would then drop us off at either the mall theater or the other one near by so my brother and I could watch a movie while she went to visit her sister Mildred.