
The back-to-school season can be expensive You've got to cover rent, moving in (if you haven't already), tuition, school supplies and textbooks, public transit passes and much more.
On top of all this, you still need to eat! Here are a few tips for making or buying meals on a budget.
It can be tempting to save time by eating out or buying ready-made meals. But cooking at home is the best way to maintain a healthy diet while saving money. A number of options are available to help you save on groceries:
Since there's currently no website or app listing all community fridges, you'll need to do some research to find one in your neighbourhood.
If you're not skilled at cooking or you don't enjoy cooking for one, collective kitchens may be right for you. The mission of a collective kitchen is to bring a group of people together to choose recipes, buy groceries, cook meals and evaluate the activity as a whole. Participating in a collective kitchen will allow you to improve your cooking skills and bring home a number of healthy, balanced and inexpensive meals.
To find the nearest collective kitchen, visit the Group of Collective Kitchens of Quebec website.
Taking charge of your food budget is important! How about saving on your banking services?
Depending on where you go to school, a food collective or soup kitchen could be a good option. Some are even located on-campus at universities and other educational establishments:
To find out if there is a food collective at your educational institution, contact your student union.
If you like to treat yourself by dining out from time to time, be sure to choose a restaurant that fits your budget. A number of websites list restaurants that offer discounts (including student discounts):
Under Advanced Search, select Deals/Coupons or Specials from the Features menu to narrow your search.
Tonresto.ca also lets you search for restaurants that offer discounts in the Quebec City, Montreal, Laurentians and Saguenay regions. Just select "Restaurants with coupons and deals" from the Specificities menu.
As you can see, meal planning on a budget doesn’t mean eating poorly. A wide range of options are available to help students eat healthy and satisfying meals.
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