Nowadays, a common and increasing trend among people is having meals in cafes and restaurants instead of cooking themselves almost regularly. Going to a restaurant has become an enjoyable option for rest in a relaxing atmosphere and socializing with friends and family after a long working day. Moreover, people are tempted by the opportunity of choosing a particular cuisine and trying unusual traditional dishes of various countries without the necessity of traveling far away. The preference to eat out is apparent, as, in the conditions of the rapid pace of life, it appears to be an excellent opportunity to save time for more useful or pleasant activities. This way, the chance of receiving some spare time presents the major argument against cooking at home. However, some cases advocating home-cooked meals still exist and occasionally outweigh the temptation to eat out. So, to outline these advantages of preparing food within home kitchens and propose a solution regarding the duration of the process is the purpose of this paper.
The first one regards the financial part of the issue, namely cooking at home is considerably more affordable than visiting any restaurant from a luxurious one to fast food. When deciding on having dinner at a restaurant, a person should bear in mind that the price for each item of the menu includes rent, staff salary, procurements, logistics issues, an owner’s profit, and more. Prices of products in a supermarket are fewer items, and supermarkets always supply customers with pleasant discounts or attractive loyalty programs. All aspects mentioned above influence the average price of cooking the same dishes at home, which is significantly less expensive than having a meal at cafes and restaurants.
Cooking food appears to be a creative activity, which, to some extent, may help to express personality and relieve tension due to backlogs of business. The creativity aspect of preparing meals does not only include complicated recipes with a long list of ingredients, demanding to spend the whole day in the kitchen. The process of combining different tastes, exploring or imagining new recipes helps to relieve tension and can be involving and inspiring. According to Gefen & Caracostea (2015), occasionally, “creativity is the ability to come up with the dinner in 30 minutes and make it something their whole family will like” (2). So, the moment of imagination and creativity may be reflected through a variety of means and duration. Cooking does involve pleasure and self-expression, especially if it is done together with family members, and contributes to creating good-hearted relations between each other. This way, compared with an evening at a restaurant, a prepared at-home meal maybe not only social care for relatives and family but also be an enjoyable and creative activity for a cooker.
The most crucial advantage of homemade meals is the possibility to control the quantity and quality of products. Predominantly, cooks at restaurants are interested in the food’s final taste and do not draw particular attention to the healthiness and nutrition balance of the food. Occasionally, restaurant food may be greasy, salty, and spicy, which negatively influences health and physical shape. Cooking at home, a person can choose healthy and nutrient-rich ingredients and balance the diet according to the medical recommendations and allergies. Unfortunately, such an option is unavailable in most cases of eating out, so the necessity of starting to cook at home cannot be underestimated.
In addition to the topic of duration, as mentioned above, cooking dinner does not obligingly requires the whole day. Reduction methods of the cooking process duration exist, and they do not demand much effort and are easy-to-use for each person, who is eager to stick to preparing food at home without serious time losses. For instance, homemade semi-finished goods or blanks may contribute to saving time significantly and ease the process of preparing food to a minimum. Another useful option for everyone, who is interested in taking a step to cooking, is joining family members in the process. Not only does it shorten the time spent on cooking, but it will also help to enjoy communication. This way, cooking occasionally appears to be more rapid than dinner at a café because there is no need to wait for the services and stand in a queue. Therefore, the duration is not an overwhelming ordeal and can be easily adjusted.
In conclusion, despite all the apparent benefits of eating at restaurants and cafes, home-cooked food outweighs a significant number of aspects. Preparing dinner is helpful not only to save money but also to express creativity and enjoy communication and time with family. Moreover, the stereotype of the duration and demanding much effort is easy to overcome by preparing some blanks. The primary aspect that cooking home contributes to is a healthy lifestyle. This way, the reasons above are enough to outline the advantage of cooking home over eating out.
Reference
Gefen, E., & Caracostea, S. (2015). Home cooking. Log, (34), 127-130. Web.