Now that restaurants have opened back up, has everyone stopped cooking?
 

I have been reading some of the older threads on here and it seemed pretty active last year during COVID. now nothing is going on?

Anyone still cooking at home?

After two nights of my rotisserie chicken, I made chicken pot pie with the leftover meat.

Last week, I looked in my fridge to figure out what to make and made a sausage and squash skillet with potatoes, bell pepper, and onion spiced with a bit of cumin, garlic and prepared mustard.

After a month of eating out (mostly lunch plus two expensive dinners) we'll be back to cooking more in our own kitchen because 1) it's less expensive and 2) the food tastes better.

nope...were still cooking at home

We'll go out once a week for either a lunch or dinner

we drove up to Cleveland a couple of weeks ago....after 7 days of B/L/D in restaurants we were really happy to be back home cooking healthy food...for us it's not about the money, it's about food cooked the way we like it

I'm just back from a week in Tampa, while the wife was in Tampa General....I chose a Homewood Suites, so I could cook some meals vs. having to eat in a restaurant all the time.

don't get me wrong, we love to dine out...and we both worked in restaurants when we were going to school...we know how hard everyone works in restaurants

that said, we also both like to cook...my wife's 1st generation Italian....NO restaurant can best her recipes. Cooking has been a hobby for me since I was the cooking merit badge counselor one summer at a boy scout camp

We make our own sausage, grind our own cheese, make our own limoncello, grind our own special blend of hamburger, we still 'can' a few items...we actually look forward to the super market flyers in the Wednesday paper and the special help define what the following week's menu will look like. We plan the week's menu out in advance and that makes food shopping a lot easier

We've taken any number of cooking classes at Johnson & Wales and with executive chefs to pick up different techniques...
if you can read and follow directions it's pretty easy to put out a fabulous meal

We get that not everyone is into cooking....and some are happy to no longer be cooking for huge families....I have a niece that dreads having to come up with a weekly menu...everyone is different

to each there own...we make no judgement on anyone that prefer to leave the cooking to someone else

We never stopped getting take-out, but I do enjoy cooking a little more than I did previous to the virus. I also was working, previous to the virus. So the virus had nothing to do with my cooking habits (or lack thereof).

Restaurants are understaffed and crowded. Most of the food has been subpar so I will stick to my own cooking for now

They've actually improved over the last couple of months. For awhile there all the minimum (and sub-minimum tip-reliant) jobs were begging for employees. Now, they're still a bit understaffed, but not as badly, and they're paying their employees better (which is good for morale and attractive to people who are actually looking for work).

We're enjoying a very low unemployment rate here in Florida. Most people who left those restaurants have already found better (or better-paying) places to work.

I still have to wear a mask so unless there is outside seating we are still staying home.

No changes here....
 

During the pandemic, we decided it was time to “ trim the fat”. Although neither one of us was obese, we decided to reduce the carbs and sugar. Its amazing what that will do. We both lost weight and it was a wonderful thing in that regards. We rode our bikes, and continued to play pickleball. I have always been a cook and I enjoy it. We eat out mostly when we go out with others but our preference is to have others over and eat at home. We prefer to eat home as it tastes so much better, and costs so much less. Also, we dont have to get “dolled up” and can eat on our lanai and enjoy a glass of wine...its all good.

New York City Snub, when I lived there I would eat out all the time.
Because of my line of work I traveled quite a bit and was treated to some exceptional restaurants in other states.
Not to put down the restaurants here, but in N.Y.C. there was more of a variety and so many if you were not good you wouldn't survive.
After a while you expect a certain standard.
There are only a few restaurants here that I will patronize, most to me feel like fast food.
So at he end of the day I find it more convenient and more satisfying to cook and eat at home.
God I miss the bakeries, French, Italian and Greek.

I don't think we will miss Maryland restaurants if we ever get down to TV. Every time we find one we like, it closes. We actually warned the waiter at our local steakhouse that he should keep his eye out for a new place to work.

I still work and do the cooking when I get home. We eat early (4:00pm) so we should fit in well at TV. My other half makes a few dishes well and give me a brake once in a while and we out maybe twice a month. I'm the cook, he does all the baking, the dishes, and cleans the whole house so I think I'm getting a pretty good deal.

I'm a bit of a foodie (though a bit picky) and worry that the majority of posters here seem to have a lukewarm opinion of the restaurants in TV. I guess it will feel like home if we ever get there!

Always prefer eating at home no matter what is going on outside. More comfortable, cheaper and healthier.

Did the food get better?

Stopped cooking? Never started....

What restaurants in and around TV have outside seating?

Filet Mignon with Rosemary and Shallots.
Burnt Brussel Sprouts.
Red potatoes.

Side note: if you have not tried the giant Shallots available down here... try them. They are much larger than typical Shallots and have that wonderful nutty flavor.

Cooking
 

I cook 2 or 3 nights a week at least. I order my meals from Home Chef and make them.