Table for One: The Apartment-Dweller's Dilemma
Although families are moving to multifamily housing in record
numbers -- and three-bedroom units are in demand like never
before -- apartment life remains a rite of passage for the young
and unmarried, and twentysomethings still predominate in many
apartment complexes. Even singles who enjoy cooking face the
nightly dilemma from which no lone resident is exempt: What do
you cook for dinner?
Once you locate a recipe (and for some of us, that's a leap
we'll never make), do you have the time to prepare it? The
desire to make the effort? And most important, you've got to
like that dish a lot -- because you're going to be eating it
until you're 85, right? Single cooks often complain that they
can't find recipes for one or two servings. Instead, they're
written to serve six people, eight people, or small armies. Of
course, you can put your mathematician's hat on, do the
division, and whittle that recipe down to two servings (what's
one-tenth of 2 cups?), but if you miscalculate, you're looking
at a culinary disaster and a lot of wasted time.
All of this makes the bold assumption that you cook. Many, many
singles don't. Some admit to cooking, but only for other people.
We singles seem to have a confidence problem in the kitchen.
We'll do it for others, but not for ourselves. So
apartment-dwellers arrive home from work each night carrying not
only their briefcases, but also their take-out boxes. And all of
them will discover with time that avoiding their kitchens not
only becomes old; it's also expensive. But the truth is that
while we might think cooking for ourselves is expensive, it's
not -- particularly if you cook multiple portions which may then
be frozen for later use. Cooking is actually far more
cost-effective than relying on convenience foods.
It used to be that we headed to a restaurant to escape the
grind, to enjoy a night out away from home. We wanted someone
else to do the cooking and the cleanup, and we were quite happy
to pay for that luxury. These days, however, we're eating less
and less often at the restaurant, shunning candles and "I'll be
your waiter this evening" for take-out -- preferably ordered
ahead of time by phone, so that we don't have to wait once we
arrive at the restaurant.
Market research firm the NPD Group found that in 1996, more
restaurant meals were taken out than eaten on premises. In
contrast, 41 percent of restaurant meals were carried out 10
years before. 1996 was the first year the pendulum swung in the
other direction, and it marked the beginning of a trend that has
continued and gained strength. The bottom line in 1998 is that
consumers want their food prepared by a restaurant, but they
don't necessarily want to eat it there. "Restaurants are
becoming prepared-food supermarkets," says NPD's Harry Balzer.
Taking into consideration our changing demographics, NPD
projects the fastest-growing restaurant meals from now until
2010 will be: weekday lunches at a restaurant without kids, up
80 million meals per year; weekend dinners at a restaurant
without kids, up 61 million meals per year; and weekday dinners
at a restaurant without kids, up 48 million meals per year.
According to recent surveys:
* Americans, excluding those who live in institutions, eat more
than one of every five meals at away-from-home eating
establishments. * Fast-food restaurants serve four out of 10
meals eaten at away-from-home eating establishments. * Four out
of 10 consumers say they have changed their eating out habits to
reflect nutritional concerns. * Adults eat roughly 30 percent of
their calories away from home. * Americans spend more than 40
cents of every food dollar on food eaten away from home. *
Today, only 55 percent of dinners include one homemade dish. Ten
years ago, the figure was 64 percent. The number of ingredients
is also at an all-time low. * Dishes such as potatoes, bread,
and salad are served less often. Vegetables, once in more than
half of all dinners, are now served at only 43 percent of
dinners. * The number of take-out dinners has more than doubled.
Source: Perspectives '97: Consumer Reviews, Trends, Forecasts;
"Eating Patterns in America," an annual survey of 2,000
households conducted by the NPD Group
Home meal replacement ("HMR") is a single person's mantra. HMR
is everywhere -- in restaurants both mainstream and upscale, in
supermarkets, and at eating establishments that specifically
market themselves as HMR providers -- with a few tables and
chairs thrown in for good measure, of course. Appetizers,
entrees, salads, side dishes, breads, desserts (and wines and
spirits) are packed up and ready to go and usually just require
a quick reheating before you serve them. While it's a handy
alternative, and many of these establishments are well-stocked
with nearly anything your stomach desires, consumers pay for
convenience, and sometimes they pay dearly.
According to Census Bureau data, the average single person earns
$28,000 per year, while the average married couple earns nearly
$49,000. The bureau has also found that single people save less
than marrieds; the average single saves $1,300 per year, while
married couples manage to stash an average of $3,521. So it
behooves a single person to think about putting that chef's hat
on every once and a while. After the initial expense of buying a
few ingredient staples, it's a good idea to put aside your ideas
about dividing a recipe down to one or two servings, and instead
following it to the letter. Spending a half-hour in the kitchen
on a dish that will last you several nights is a time-saving
strategy. After all, if you're entering the kitchen either every
night or every other night to start cooking all over again,
cooking may soon become a chore.
While there's too much variance among consumers to determine how
much money the average person could save by brown-bagging it to
work, or merely cutting down on business/social lunches, it goes
without saying that if you're used to going out every day,
ordering drinks and/or appetizers and/or dessert, and paying a
tip, you're going to see substantial savings if you start
packing your lunches, at least occasionally. While it's a
conservative estimate, let's say you spend $5 each weekday on
food -- that could be your morning cup of coffee, or a
relatively inexpensive lunch out with your co-workers. That's
$100 per month, or $1,200 per year. Keeping a spending diary
will quickly open your eyes. If you purchase the insomniac's
special -- a jumbo latte -- for $3 every morning before you face
the office, that's $60 a month.
If you've seen the light and have committed to gracing your
kitchen with your presence -- but you're stumped for ideas -- go
online. It's a cook's paradise -- even a single cook's paradise.
You'll find everything on the Internet, from simple recipes to
more adventurous ones. And for those of you who want to see what
the finished product will look like, you'll occasionally find
pictures online, as well. Some suggested sites include
Pillsbury
CompuCook
Southern Living Online
Safeway.com
Cooking Light Online
all of which have comprehensive, easy-to-use recipe indexes for
all skill levels.
If your idea of a kitchen is a room where you store your empty
take-out boxes, consider these tips before you begin your next
culinary adventure:
* Although you might be tempted to divide a recipe that feeds
four or more, many cooks find that the recipe doesn't turn out
as successfully if they attempt to modify it. It's best to
follow the recipe exactly, then freeze your extra portions.
You've just saved yourself time and effort, because you'll have
at least two meals -- if not more -- ready to defrost, and
you'll appreciate them on nights when you're tired and have no
desire to cook. * Water boils more quickly when you cover your
pot with a lid. * If you're planning to cook vegetables along
with your pasta, toss them into the water a few minutes before
your pasta is ready. You'll have less to clean up later. * If
you're cooking pasta (a single person's friend -- it's both
versatile and inexpensive), cook enough for two nights. * Get a
Crock Pot. You can toss in as little or as much as you like, and
you can't possibly make a mistake.
So get familiar with that kitchen of yours. It may be a galley,
but it's still home. What have you got to lose, other than money?