$100 wk for Food?

Vibe_2020

Member
Jul 1, 2003
200
2
18
Hello,

I'm a single male.

I'm trying to get an ideal of how much it would cost to live in Sosua.

Is it possible to live off $100 a week for groceries in the DR?

I don't plan on eating out, just cooking.

Thanks for any insight.
 

DavidZ

Silver
Aug 29, 2005
3,512
238
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www.vipcigartours.com
If you really cook in all your meals and dont drink much beer, you can eat very well for $100 week, keep in mind that's about the food budget for an average Dominican family... for a MONTH! Then again, it can also be spent very easily on 1 meal out for 4 people.
 

Ken

Platinum
Jan 1, 2002
13,884
495
83
Yes, you could do it. Ground beef, chicken and pork chops, salad, vegetables, potatoes, rice, etc., etc. will all be affordable. If in Sosua, La Roca has a good menu for residents with a wide selection that presently costs RD$185/person. That is affordable on your budget, also.
 

AZB

Platinum
Jan 2, 2002
12,290
519
113
You can easily live off 100 dollars / week on food if you cook at home.
AZB
 
C

Chip00

Guest
We spend about $7 on average a day on food eating at home for 2 1/2 adults(the maid eats lunch but not dinner) and two small children and that includes at least one bottle of soda.

The typical meals are as follows:

Bfast- fruit, bread or platano w/cheese
Lunch - rice, beans, meat, salad
Dinner - platano, cheese or salami

Here are some local costs:
2 liter soda - RD65
beef - RD65/lb
chicken - RD32/lb
Rice -RD19/lb
Beans - RD30/lb
platano - RD5
Beer 22 oz RD65
Cheese RD70/lb
tomato RD30/lb
lettuce RD30/lb
bottled water RD30/5 gal
 
Sep 19, 2005
4,632
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you will have to learn where to shop to make the most of your budget. I have gone to small places to eat out and have had the bill for four people total less than 500 pesos. I have found that several different places. Then I have gone grocery shopping in mid to large grocery stores and spent over 3000 pesos with half a shopping cart of food. Any grocery store that even remotely looks americanized..will charge way more than you can afford if you want to eat for amonth on 3300 pesos. I am always amazed at how cheap you can eat out compared to buying and cooking at home...

we went to the hot food counter at La Sirena. where you pick the hot foods you want along with any number of salad type dishes and any type of drink you want....me my GF her mother and sister, the later 2 who know how to pack the food away...especially when I am buying. ha ha ha...and it was 480 pesos..that was THREE full trays of food and a tray of deserts and drinks.

I was astonished.

bob
 
C

Chip00

Guest
Eating out

Eating out can be relatively inexpensive IF you do some research beforehand. There are many clean comdeores and restaurants to be found whre Dominicans eat that will have a plate of food for RD60-80 that includes rice, beans, meat and salad. You need to realize though, that the salad will be washed in the local water supply. Mostly only the finer restaurants that cater to gringos will wash the salad in filtered water. The good thing is though if you do get the bug then after you won't be so susceptible.

The problems you will find is that there are no prices or menus typically and if you don't look or talk like a Dominican they will more than likely charge you more as they usually try to do it to me. That is why I will usually ask someone out on the street in front of the place how much they charge and then will also ask someone in line as well. I figure they can't all be in collusion to rob me!

As my wife doesn't like to cook lunch on the weekends we usually buy three plates for us and our two young daughtere and it comes out to RD270 with a 2 liter drink or US$8 - not bad.
 

fender

*** Sin Bin ***
Dec 9, 2006
33
0
0
cheap!

me my GF her mother and sister, the later 2 who know how to pack the food away...especially when I am buying. ha ha ha...and it was 480 pesos..that was THREE full trays of food and a tray of deserts and drinks.

I was astonished.

bob

now that's bargain-basement sankification right there!!:bunny:
 
Sep 19, 2005
4,632
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yeah I sanktified THEM!! ha ha ha

I went to a place called Don Lindo on rte 14 just outside santiago in Li Cey.
6 adults ate there. It is a decent plain jane airconditioned restraunt. we all had chicken or meat main dishes. we had 2 bottles of wine and sodas. we all had side dishes and there was three huge plates to share for the table...white rice brown rice, and something else..i forget..salads.
three of us had deserts. and the bill was less than 800 pesos. one of my first experiences of cheap diningout after i spent 4000 pesos shopping at National in Santiago one day.......

you know the restraunt knows where to buy food!

bob
 

dv8

Gold
Sep 27, 2006
31,266
363
0
there is this place in POP that serves the poorest (sponsored by private companies and government).
once minovio sent his workers to get lunch for us. two big plates of rice, beans, chicken and platanos - 15 pesos.
there you are - 100 dollars can buy you lots of food if you know where to go...
we also had whole roasted chicken plus tostones and fries and drinks for 160 pesos, that too in POP.
ask locals, they all know where you can have cheap and good food.
 

Criss Colon

Platinum
Jan 2, 2002
21,843
191
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yahoomail.com
I Get All The "SNAPPER" I Want For 400 Pesos!

"Sushi" Style Too!:cheeky: :cheeky: :cheeky: ;) ;) ;)
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johne

Silver
Jun 28, 2003
7,090
2,963
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Red Snapper? The very best...

How about red snapper either at resturant or at store?

is in a very small restaurant (seats only 8 couples per night) that has some of the finest food I have ever had.
They generally start with a appertiser course of snails in the shell with butter and garlic sauce or fresh lobster tails flown in from Maine. After that they will serve pasta made fresh daily with fresh tomato sauce or a sauce using the fresh lobster. Of if you prefer he will make a Sicilian sauce of pine nuts, anchovie and fresh fennel.
For your main course RED SNAPPER made 3 ways. Grilled, broiled, or marichiaro.Great vegetables on the side-always fresh and always picked that day.
Dessert is strawberries with fresh cream, or homade Italian style cheese cake.
After dinner drinks include some of the finest grappas you can imagine along with some great Sauternes. Of course they have a selection of cigars for you pleasure.
Prices are not bad either.
 
Sep 19, 2005
4,632
91
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is in a very small restaurant (seats only 8 couples per night) that has some of the finest food I have ever had.
They generally start with a appertiser course of snails in the shell with butter and garlic sauce or fresh lobster tails flown in from Maine. After that they will serve pasta made fresh daily with fresh tomato sauce or a sauce using the fresh lobster. Of if you prefer he will make a Sicilian sauce of pine nuts, anchovie and fresh fennel.
For your main course RED SNAPPER made 3 ways. Grilled, broiled, or marichiaro.Great vegetables on the side-always fresh and always picked that day.
Dessert is strawberries with fresh cream, or homade Italian style cheese cake.
After dinner drinks include some of the finest grappas you can imagine along with some great Sauternes. Of course they have a selection of cigars for you pleasure.
Prices are not bad either.

ok John, we are all on the edge of our seats.......and.........this might be a tad of a technicality......but......you got an address?

I had lobster in Sosua last weekend and it was fantastic......some place called El batey. on Pedro Clisante.....and the shrimp cocktail my Gf had was equally great.......the sauce was very good. It was more like an entre than an appetizer.

bob

bob
 

Don Juan

Living Brain Donor
Dec 5, 2003
856
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Red, black, white or yellow. always good with wine IN them.

"Sushi" Style Too!:cheeky: :cheeky: :cheeky: ;) ;) ;)
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Yummm! such good eatin' and Oh, the smell of it! sniff, sniff. mmmmm!!
 

globalmike295

On Vacation
Jul 11, 2006
216
2
0
ok John, we are all on the edge of our seats.......and.........this might be a tad of a technicality......but......you got an address?

I had lobster in Sosua last weekend and it was fantastic......some place called El batey. on Pedro Clisante.....and the shrimp cocktail my Gf had was equally great.......the sauce was very good. It was more like an entre than an appetizer.

bob

bob

What is the name of this reataurant ?
 

J D Sauser

Silver
Nov 20, 2004
2,940
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www.hispanosuizainvest.com
I eat extremely well and enjoy cooking here and I don't think that I reach USD100.oo a week average. However, I have lived in many countries and learned to adapt my cooking and try new things with what's locally available and here, quite honestly, there's a lot available. This allows me to stick to national products or the imported products everybody else here uses (Eg: habichuelas are imported!).

I have an excell spread sheet with my shopping data... prices broken up per lbs and liters etc... If anybody cares for it, you can PM me and give me your e-mail and I will send it to you. I have tried to post it here but it shows as too many characters. (btw. it's in Spanish just like most every thing here).

On the other hand, if you start craving your "back home" products or want to stick exactly to what you were raised on.... your USD100.oo won't cover one trip to the super market.

... J-D.