Managing meals in the USA

Generally the Food in US, whether you dine out or prepare it at home depends on a few factors to consider. For one and the most important fact about food I should say it falls on the budget you have allocated for your daily consumption and second every individuals eating habits meaning that whether healthy and nutritious food is your priority for you and to what extend ? so considering these two very basic factors, in General the food in USA restaurant, and again depending on the Geography that you live in, is poison if you are a healthy food fan regardless of the price of food.  in that case you should consider definitely preparing food at home which in most cases I personally do.  Dining out in US generally is not necessarily expensive if you do not care about processed food and what have you because of the huge amount of varieties of food that is available to choose from.  If you choose to dine out because of  not having time or patience to prepare and cook fresh food at home, one serious advise I have is that at least try to eat extremely small portion to the extend that you feel still so hungry when you finish you food or face very sad consequences and that is it would not take more than a few years that you would join to 75 percent of the rest of Americans with cardiovascular disease, obesity, or what have you...

@Cheryl

In Florida, where I am snowbirding, eating out is usually earlier than in Europe. It is also much quicker than in Europe as a lot of restaurants except the very fancy ones want to fill tables 2x per evening. So sitting in a restaurant from 8PM  to 11PM like in Belgium is not done here. Also prices on the menu look cheaper but by the time taxes are added and a tip is added, prices are not much cheaper. But the portions are much bigger than in most European countries and taking home a "doggie bag" that is offered by the servers, while in Belgium you have to ask for it, is very common.

Prices of groceries have gone up more than in Belgium especially vegetables .

Thank you both for these detailed insights,  very interesting to read! 👏

I notice that you both mentioned the portion sizes in the US being much larger compared to Europe. That seems to be something many new expats struggle with at first.

How did you personally adapt to that?

Did you naturally start eating less over time, or did you have to adjust your habits (sharing plates, ordering smaller portions, taking leftovers home, etc.)?

Also, for those who mostly cook at home:

Did you find it easy to source fresh ingredients, or did you have to change some of your usual recipes based on what was available where you live?

Would love to hear more about how you managed the transition. Your experience can really help future expats prepare better!

Cheers,

Cheryl