When I was young, I would hear that healthy foods were more expensive than junk food. It was rumored that a loaf of whole wheat bread with fiber in it was actually sawdust. Only rich people could afford fresh vegetables. That was why we only ate canned vegetables.

I know we have come a long way from as far a food nutrition. It was in 1990′s when it became a mandate to have on all package foods a list of nutrition facts is a fairly simple readable label. Today, most all of us read those labels before we buy.

In my research I found an article from 2007, it stated, “That’s what University of Washington researchers found when they compared the prices of 370 foods sold at supermarkets in the Seattle area. Calorie for calorie, junk foods not only cost less than fruits and vegetables, but junk food prices also are less likely to rise as a result of inflation.”

A few weeks back I wrote about the star rating system for hotels. Today, I want to look at the star rating system of restaurants.

The reason why I am writing about the rating system for restaurant’s is I want to know and I want you to know what to expect when you walk into a restaurant. Are you getting your monies worth in terms of food and service?

How much food do we really need to satisfy your bodies and stomaches requests for food. Like most of us, we head to the local fast food joint, and order according to how appealing the pictures are on that menu board.

Most every fast food joint, has their menu board broke up into three basic sections. Comb meals which consist of a main course, a side dish, and a drink. The value items usually include a small sandwich, fries, drink and desert. Each item ranges in price from 99 cents to $2. Then there is the regular price individual offerings.

In this post I am talking about lunches for elementary aged children. Why? That is the age range of our daughter. Since school starts Monday, we need to decide if your daughter is going to take a lunch or buy her’s.

Last school year, our daughter was happy taking a school lunch. Then about February she started asking for a hot lunch. This year she wants a hot lunch, because all her friends will be taking a hot lunch.

Most school lunches run about $1.90. Then those school who offer breakfast for the kids for around $1.25. Those families that are struggles there is a reduced price if not free. For the reduced or free school lunch program, you will need to contact for office at the school your child goes.

If you are wondering if it is more economical to pack your child a lunch of buy them a hot lunch, consider the following;

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1. Lunch box or lunch bag runs about $12.00 (That is if the child does not lose it during the school year). The National Standard says our children are to have 180 days of school per school years. That means a school lunch box costs just under 7 cents per day.
2. A sandwich cost between 25 cents to a dollar, depending if it is peanut butter or lunch meat. For our calculations we will say 50 cents per day on the average.
3. An individual size juice container of 6.75 fluid ounces will cost just under 50 cents each.
4. A snack of fruit (say a banana for our calculations)is currently running 47 cents per pound. A pound is roughly 3 bananas. That breaks down to another 15.6 per banana.

It cost to have a child take lunch to to school with them is $1.23 on the average.

What I did show is that there is savings for a child taking there own lunch is not a huge difference to them having a hot lunch at school. Over a week’s time the difference is $3.35. Well, that would add up to $67 per month.

I did not include plastic bags nor the time it takes to fix a lunch. These figures are per child. If you have more than one child in school you can multiply these figures by the number of children you have going to school.

If you are like me you get tired to taking peanut butter and jelly sandwich to work. There are times I just want some kind of meat. However, I do get lazy and don’t want to fix a foot long deli sandwich beforegoing to work.

A Bologna sandwich is good quick filling sandwich.

• Whole wheat sandwich bread is 9 cents per slice
• 2 slices of regular cut Bologna – 50 cents
• Mustard and Mayo – 5 cents

That makes the cost of the sandwich cost 73 cents, along with a soda which is 25 cents. That gives you a light for lunch to cost 98 cents.

There is nothing more that says America than the Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich.

What makes the Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich so great is its’ nutriutional value at such a low price.

• Strawberry jelly cost 8 cents per ounce
• Peanut butter cost 9 cents per ounce
• Whole wheat sandwich bread is 6 cents per slice

I like to have 2.5 ounces of equal parts of peanut butter and jelly. That makes a good peanut butter sandwich cost 54 1/2 cents per sandwich.

Now add a 25 cents for a soda plus 54 1/2 cents for the sandwich, that is a nice little snack, for under $1.

When I see major fast food joints offering a large sandwich for under $5, I think what a rip off. I could make that same sandwich for a whole lot less and still have enough money for a something to drink.

This is what I mean.

• Bread – 45 cents
• 3 different types of meat – $2
• Slice of tomato – 10 cents
• Cheese – 12 cents
• Mustard and Mayo – 5 cents
• Pickeles, onions, and peppers – 20 cents

I can make a similar sandwich for $2.92. Then I add a sports drink for 88 cents. There you have it a good healthy lunch for $3.80.  I have saved $1.20. That is a $1.20 in my pocket.