taking the out out of "take out" (the take, too)... okay fine we ate in on a friday night.

well, it was a friday night, and we were hungry.  we were going out for drinks to bid farewell to a friend who has made the logical (read: inevitable) decision to move out of the city to be closer to family and pay rent that equals the cost of my phone bill in brooklyn (WHAT.) so we weren't going to go out for an elaborate dinner.

options, options... and it always lands on... take out?

reasons why take out is optimal for a friday night:

-  it's easy
-  you've been at work all day and you're tired
-  clean up is minimal
-  it's delicious

other things to consider, though:

-  it costs at least $20-$30
-  it always takes longer than they say it's going to
-  you've been at work all day and you're tired and hungry
-  it's usually not that delicious

trader joe's cous cous, trader joe's
indian fare, hummus, pita,
shish kabobs from fresh direct

okay, okay - it's not always as doom and gloom as i'm painting it.  i'm sort of like grandpa joe and charlie convincing themselves that the golden ticket would've made the chocolate taste weird anyway -- i'm trying to stick to a budget and take out, while a valid option, didn't feel like a necessary way to spend $30 last night.

but i was truthfully tired, hungry, and didn't want to spend hours (or to be honest even minutes) cooking.

i opened the cabinets and refrigerator and found three separate - very easy - items that combined to make quite a meal.  you might have even chosen the same items were you perusing a take out menu!

trader joe's, fresh direct, and prepared hummus to the rescue!  using stuff we already had, we made chicken shish kabobs served with punjab choley and couscous with a side of hummus and pita.

it's hard to say what the total cost of this meal was in the end, because i pieced together things i already had.  but it was definitely a lot cheaper than going out, cheaper than take out, and rather tasty.

i'd really recommend trying to cook something easy and a little different on a friday night rather than getting take out before you go out to meet friends for a drink -- at least once and a while.  it was really more satisfying than take out would have been, and $30 more stayed in the piggy bank than would have had some pad thai gotten here on its own.