Ellington

With the economic downturn, eating out at restaurants can be a splurge if you are trying to save money. But Grady Griffin, director of the Mississippi Hospitality and Restaurant Association, says that when you do have the chance to eat out, dining at a locally owned restaurant is one way to make sure your dollars stay in the community.

"We don't know when the recession will be over in Mississippi, and whether or not it will be a double-
dipper recession," Griffin says. "It is critically important to support local restaurants because these are people you go to church with, who employ people you know, whose children go to school with your children."

Independently owned restaurants employ local citizens and support other local businesses by buying local ingredients. They also strengthen the local tax base, whereas a chain restaurant has to forward a percentage of its revenue to their corporate office.

For every $1 spent at a restaurant, 95 cents is for operating cost, 5 cents is for profit
Of the 95 cents for operating cost, approximately...

18 or 19 cents is for other operating costs (utilities, insurance, obtaining various licenses)
35 cents is for labor (management and employees)
33 cents is for food costs

(source: Grady Griffin, Mississippi Hospitality and Restaurant Association)

Nationally and Statewide, How Restaurants Contribute to the Economy

Nation:
The U.S. restaurant industry's sales in 2010 are projected to bring in $580 billion in sales.

Every dollar spent by consumers in restaurants generates an additional $2.05 to the nation's economy.

The restaurant industry employs about 12.7 million people, or 9 percent of the U.S. work force.

Every additional $1 million in restaurant sales generates 34 jobs for the economy.

Mississippi:
In 2010, Mississippi's restaurants are projected to register $3 billion in sales.

Every $1 spent in Mississippi's restaurants generates an additional $.90 in sales for the state economy.

Restaurant jobs represent 10 percent of employment in Mississippi or 112,300 people.

Every extra $1 million spent in Mississippi's restaurants and bars generates an additional 32.7 jobs in the state.

(Source: National Association of Restaurants)

Cooking: Getting More Bang For Your Buck
Believe it or not, you can save on groceries. Tom Ramsey, JFP food writer and owner of Ivy & Devine Culinary Group, says that if we all can "get down to real food," our pockets would thank us later. Ramsey suggests people purchase more foods in their whole form and skip packaged meals that makes the products cost more. "A bag of beans is like 89 cents," he says. "Have beans, rice and pork chops, and you can feed three or four people."

Ramsey says saving money has more to do with how you prepare than what you prepare. He uses chicken bones for his chicken stock and uses various leftovers that aren't enough to make an entire meal on their own for omelets and pasta dishes. When cooking for one, Ramsey suggests looking for cheaper cuts of meat, and freezing the unused portions.