A Brunch Date Is a Fine Way To Save Dough

The early bird apparently not only gets the worm, but also saves money.

Last weekend, one of our colleagues went out for brunch at Mosaic Cuisine & Cafe in Rockville and noticed several large parties. Being a journalist, she eavesdropped (just a little!) and overheard one diner's frugal-minded comment:

"This was a great idea. It is so much cheaper getting together for breakfast than dinner."

So I called Mosaic chef and owner Thierry Jugnet to find out more.

He said business on Friday and Saturday nights has been extremely volatile since the economy's nose dive in the fall. One weekend the restaurant may get slammed with more than 120 dinners; the next, maybe half that.

"No explanations," Thierry said. "It's very difficult to understand exactly why."

Brunch, however, has remained strong. He's made the occasion more festive for guests by creating custom cakes for morning events -- a pink or blue one for a baby shower, for example. The average price per person for brunch is $12 to $14, he said. Dinner runs $18 to $20.

This got me thinking about other ways to spend less when dining out. The Lazy Man and Money blog suggests turning one meal into two. Sense to Save advises skipping the entree and just ordering appetizers and dessert. CafeMom says restaurants are trying to save you money by offering smaller portions that are less expensive.

Of course, the truly frugal option is to invite your friends over and fry up a few eggs! Better yet, go over to someone else's house and eat their eggs for free.

But don't tell them I said that!

-- Ylan Q. Mui