10 ways to save money on food in Switzerland

Transcription

1 10 ways to save money on food in Switzerland

2 You know the problem... Buying food is one of those reoccurring costs that really eat away at your budget. Day by day. Of course, us backpackers try to eat as cheap as possible whenever we can. But there are only so many days one can live off instant noodles. In order to keep you from going into an instant-noodle-coma and still not waste your hard earned travel cash, I ve put together 10 tips how you can save money on food (and drinks) while you re in Switzerland. Even though I m only a part time backpacker at the moment, I apply most of those tricks in my everyday life. So they re all penny-pincher approved.

3 1. Cook your own meals You d be surprised to see that groceries don t have to be super expensive. Aldi and Lidl are the cheapest supermarkets so keep an eye out for those. Other popular places to go grocery shopping are Migros and Coop. They both have their own budget lines called M-Budget at Migros and Prix-Garantie at Coop. My favourite budget meal is the pre-made Rösti from Migros. A 500g bag costs between 1.50 and 2.00 CHF. Buy two eggs and some veggies along with it and you have a 5 CHF meal prepared in no time.

4 2. Benefit from pre closing time sales Grocery stores don t like throwing out food. It s a waste of their money. So if you do your shopping 1.5 to 2 hours before closing time, you might catch some good deals. Look out for the bright orange or red 50% stickers and get yoghurt, cheese, meat, bread, desserts or whatever else is about to expire for a massive discount. Note: Closing time is usually 6:30 pm but in bigger cities, shops stay open until 8 pm or even longer. I usually go shopping after 4:30 pm.

5 3. Go out for lunch There are heaps of great deals available during lunchtime. From the 10 CHF Thai take-away to the 13 CHF pizza at an Italian restaurant to a set menu with entree, main and dessert for 18 CHF, you can find some real bargains. It s still more expensive than cooking your own food but if you re going to eat out, do it at lunch time. Tip: Every Manor department store has a buffet style restaurant called Manora. It s one I go to when I need a cooked meal at a reasonable price.

6 4. Stretch that take-away One way to reduce your food expenses is to stretch those left overs. When you go to an Italian restaurant, eat a lot of that free bread and have them wrap up whatever s left of your pizza. Or when you get Thai or Chinese take-away, save your left overs and cook your own rice or noodles to make a second meal out of it.

7 5. Go to Ässbar You re going to love this one. With this concept, participating bakeries take whatever they didn t sell during the day to an Ässbar shop. The next day, people can buy perfectly good bread, desserts, sandwiches, bread rolls, croissants and cookies for half the price or less. You can find Ässbar shops in Zurich, Winterthur, St. Gallen, Bern and Fribourg. They re opening new stores as we speak since it s become so popular. If this isn t a backpacker s paradise, I don t know what is.

8 6. Use the too good to go app Too good to go takes the whole stop-foodwaste movement to another level. This app lets restaurants and bakeries sell their leftovers (sounds a lot more negative than it is) before closing time at a reduced price. This means you can get a plate of Indian Curry, a couple of artfully decorated cupcakes, a portion of sushi or a fresh burrito for a massive discount. Simply download the app and look for an offer that suits your taste. You ll need to pay for your food through the app and show up at the restaurant at the time indicated. If this idea isn t genius, I don t know what is.

9 7. Stay close to universities and schools Food places around universities and bigger schools often have amazing deals, especially during lunch time. Keep an eye out for them and bring your student card if you have one. You never know what discount you might get. You probably won t find the healthiest choices around schools but if a sandwich, a kebab or a slice of fast food pizza is what you re looking for, mingle with the students and you ll be happy.

10 8. Carry oats It doesn t get much cheaper than eating oats for breakfast. Buy some fruit and a (pre-closing-time-half-price-yoghurt) and you re starting the day off as budget friendly as can be.

11 9. Buy your own beer Drinking out is expensive. You can easily pay 8 CHF for a beer if you go to a restaurant or a bar. I m not saying you shouldn t go out but if you re on a really tight budget, buying alcohol at the supermarket saves you a lot of money. Drinking in public is legal in Switzerland so grabbing a few beers and having them wherever you want makes for a budget friendly night out. By the way, Migros doesn t sell alcohol. Every other grocery store does, though.

12 10. Drink tap water Depending on where you re from, you might not be used to drinking from the tap. Swiss water is among the cleanest in the world and there s no need to spend money on bottled water. Just carry your own bottle and keep refilling it. When you re out for the day, there are plenty of public fountains around. Unless it says kein Trinkwasser, non potable or non potabile, it means it s drinking water and you re good to go.