By Mike Thayer
Can you eat nothing but fast food value meals for a week on just $50?
That’s a budget of just $7.14 a day.
Are there enough restaurants out there offering value meals that will fit in the budget? Will there be enough variety? Will I stay full enough, no snacking required?
Can I stay under budget and eat well to boot?
Day 7 lunch and chicken sounds good
It’s been a tough challenge. There is just no way to eat a variety of meals, stay full between meals and spend just $7.14 a day to do it. Starving going into lunch, I decided on Kentucky Fried Chicken and one of their $5 Fill Up meals. I went with the chicken tenders, extra crispy, mashed potatoes and gravy, biscuit, medium drink, dipping sauce for the tenders and a chocolate chip cookie for dessert. That’s a darn good meal for just $5 and it did indeed fill me up. I received my to-go order quickly, the chicken was prepared perfectly, seasoned well and the mashed potatoes with gravy and biscuit really hit the spot. I’m saving one of the tenders and the cookie for later.
So what lies ahead for dinner? While I am still on track with the budget on this last day of the challenge, I’ve got just $1.01 left for dinner. Uh-oh!
Meal total for the day:
Breakfast: $1.08
Lunch: $5.40
Cumulative total for the Challenge:
Day 1: $7.29
Day 2: $6.44
Day 3: $7.27
Day 4: $7.36
Day 5: $8.59
Day 6: $5.34
Day 7: $6.48 with dinner to go
I went over budget by 15 cents on Day 1. I was under budget by 55 cents on Day 2. I went over budget by 13 cents on Day 3. After Day 4 I had a whopping 5 cent surplus working for me. That laughable surplus didn’t matter, I blew my daily budget on Day 5 by $1.45. Ouch! On Day 6, I sacrificed in the name of food science and came in under budget by 35 cents. With a budget of $7.49 left for Day 7, the final day of the challenge, I’ve got just $1.01 left for dinner.
Grand Total: $48.99
The nice thing about this challenge – No dish washing required! Bonus!
And then there’s bonus #2: A growing surplus of napkins!
Bonus #3: The opportunity to rack up on condiment packets….. You knew that was coming, right? What bachelor does NOT have condiment packets in his fridge? I’ve racked up ketchup, mustard, mayo, salt, pepper, ranch dressing, buffalo sauce, honey and honey mustard!
Spend Wisely My Friends…..
A Bachelor on the Cheap Challenge: Eating Fast Food Value Meals for a Week on a $50 Budget, Day 7, Lunch – Bachelor on the Cheap
By Mike Thayer
Can you eat nothing but fast food value meals for a week on just $50?
That’s a budget of just $7.14 a day.
Are there enough restaurants out there offering value meals that will fit in the budget? Will there be enough variety? Will I stay full enough, no snacking required?
Can I stay under budget and eat well to boot?
Day 7 lunch and chicken sounds good
It’s been a tough challenge. There is just no way to eat a variety of meals, stay full between meals and spend just $7.14 a day to do it. Starving going into lunch, I decided on Kentucky Fried Chicken and one of their $5 Fill Up meals. I went with the chicken tenders, extra crispy, mashed potatoes and gravy, biscuit, medium drink, dipping sauce for the tenders and a chocolate chip cookie for dessert. That’s a darn good meal for just $5 and it did indeed fill me up. I received my to-go order quickly, the chicken was prepared perfectly, seasoned well and the mashed potatoes with gravy and biscuit really hit the spot. I’m saving one of the tenders and the cookie for later.
So what lies ahead for dinner? While I am still on track with the budget on this last day of the challenge, I’ve got just $1.01 left for dinner. Uh-oh!
Meal total for the day:
Breakfast: $1.08
Lunch: $5.40
Cumulative total for the Challenge:
Day 1: $7.29
Day 2: $6.44
Day 3: $7.27
Day 4: $7.36
Day 5: $8.59
Day 6: $5.34
Day 7: $6.48 with dinner to go
I went over budget by 15 cents on Day 1. I was under budget by 55 cents on Day 2. I went over budget by 13 cents on Day 3. After Day 4 I had a whopping 5 cent surplus working for me. That laughable surplus didn’t matter, I blew my daily budget on Day 5 by $1.45. Ouch! On Day 6, I sacrificed in the name of food science and came in under budget by 35 cents. With a budget of $7.49 left for Day 7, the final day of the challenge, I’ve got just $1.01 left for dinner.
Grand Total: $48.99
The nice thing about this challenge – No dish washing required! Bonus!
And then there’s bonus #2: A growing surplus of napkins!
Bonus #3: The opportunity to rack up on condiment packets….. You knew that was coming, right? What bachelor does NOT have condiment packets in his fridge? I’ve racked up ketchup, mustard, mayo, salt, pepper, ranch dressing, buffalo sauce, honey and honey mustard!
Spend Wisely My Friends…..