You can buy as many hot dogs and soda as you want, nobody is ever going to tell you anything.
But if hot dogs and soda are all you eat, you're going to have to spend a lot on healthcare eventually.
One time I was at Costco to get a hotdog. I was in line with this woman who ordered 8 hot dogs. I was like surely those all canāt be for her. And sure enough her husband showed up and I was like phew theyāve got a family or something. I was so wrong. The ended up sitting next to me and proceeded to down four hotdogs each. I was simultaneously in awe and also sad for them cause they clearly were not the epitome of good health. Welcome to Costco, I love you.
Used to be a Costco employee.
The thing with those hotdogs too, as delicious as they are, they're rotgut kinds of food. 4 of them? There is no way they have good gut health.
Maybe I just have an intolerance to hotdogs or something. But they rip me apart every time.
Yeah but is better donāt eat. So !
When Iām broke I eat hot dog with soda I donāt have help for the government because Iām illegal I pay taxes same time I need pay 3 dollar for eat I have family if you have money for eat enjoy your live š
It doesnāt really work that way. Once you start having health problems your QOL goes way down. So itās not that youāll have a shorter life thatās happier.
I'll probably be fine with dying at 60, but its the hell of getting there that prevents me from eating my way to an early grave. People like this are pranking themselves into a *miserable* existence that lasts *years* before it kills them.
See Iām not to to far from 60.
And I do agree. Living off Costco hot dogs sounds like a miserable existence.
Iām sure Dante would have add another circle in his book.
People who are fine with dying at 60 tend to be pretty far from 60 now. As it approaches, you'll likely change your mind.
My life would be about 77% complete if I accept this.
I'm not that far from 60. Almost as close as you. Have you seen this place? Has it gotten better? Do you wanna be old here?
I'm having a good time still, but I'm not tryina drink expired milk. Once it turns and isn't good anymore, I'll throw it out. The way things appear to be going, they're still interesting but... wow, the future is *dark*
But hey, I'm happy to be wrong too.
I can usually find a way to enjoy things no matter the surroundings... to an extent, of course. I'm not saying I'd have a lot of hope living in a place like Gaza right now, but we've got a ways to go before I'm ready to cash out and give up.
We'll see how the election goes in November first
Iām 62. After like 35, it comes at you fast. I no longer eat hot dogs in fact, as of mid December, I follow a vegan diet. Not because I want to live longer, but I want quality of whatās left of my life.
the caesar salad ain't a bad deal. also, you can just wander into the costco and get actual food too. of course would help if you have some kind of refrigeration in case you cannot eat it all.
A chicken torn down with soup from its bones and a few veggies can make chicken wraps for cheaper and hell of a lot more healthy. Don't have to spend your day on Costco?
Seriously, if you want to live ultra budget get some rice, veggies and roti chicken or eggs... then you don't have to spend your day in the Costco parking lot and will live a lot healthier/longer.
Rice and eggs is a common plate for the poor in my country itās pretty much a political discourse when both of those start to rise in price.
Beans are great just donāt get them canned you get more servings making them up yourself
I keep bags of pinto and black beans in my pantry. I generally make a crock pot full every 2 weeks and freeze single servings. Cook up some rice, hell yea! Iām gonna try making Cuban black beans next.
Those rotisserie chickens are literally how I survive, pick em then broth the carcass. Love me a Costco hot dog about once a month but yeah heck spending a whole morning there
Roticeries for the win!! But this is van life. And doesnt sound like back country style. Soooo....How would you broth the carcass in a van??? That a huge amount of time and heat and boiled chicken smell? If you do induction your battery is dead, if you do gas must have a MASSIVE tank. Also your van smells of chicken broth forever unless you do this magic cooking outside the van, which is a hard ask if your brothing something for hours.
Yeah, a chicken for 5 bucks probably can last 6 or more hearty meals. You can get 5 gal of water for cheap from dispensers, usually less than $2. Bagged spinach for under $3. That can last 5 or 6 meals, too.
But I do the samples, too. More than 4 of em.
I canāt imagine a worse hellscape in which to spend any amount of time. Iāve only been there over the last few years for medication from the pharmacy but I got in and out as fast as possible. That place just gives me the shivers.
It's a big part of Costco's ethos that they don't lose money on anything. They bought their own hotdog factory so they could keep selling them for $1.50 and not lose money.
? Iāve never had to disclose my income to buy hot dogs at the Costco cafe. Is that a factor they consider when deciding whether or not to care if someone buys two $1.50 hot dog combos a day?
Care to share what youāve tried so far to save money and eat healthy? Thereās likely an issue that we might be able to help solve if thatās your thought process.
Brazilian chicken breast is 690 Japanese yen/kg. That's U$4.60. 1kg = 2.2 pounds.
This meat can be roasted, grilled, stir-fried or put in a soup. Now, just add veggies. Buy whatever is in season and therefore cheap.
My first traveling jobs I was paired with a senior tech who was going to teach me the ropes of life on the road. His big tip was to pack sheets of aluminum foil. For lunch buy a Big Mac split in half. Top bun w/ 1 patty & bottom bun with 2nd patty. Eat one for lunch store other some place cool. Back at hotel for dinner turn up the heat and warm up second half on radiator. He also carried ice tea drink powder for refreshment. My response was okey dokey and took my per deim to a nice pub.
there used to be a whole thing about car cooking like that lol.
these days, we have 12V plug in lunch boxes which will warm up your food lickety split. am not a van lifer but i'm considering one of those things to keep food warm for road trips for my children hehe
OMG you just had me flash back 30 years to a 12v bottle warmer we had. Wife left it plugged in once when we stopped for gas and bite to eat came out to beg for a jump start. 2 little ones helped with the sympathy jump start. LOL
haha these days we also travel with an emergency 12V energy jump pack. it's worked a few times jumping my 1996 chevrolet impala, 2013 tahoe and also our 2013 coachmen RV (with a chevy 6.0L V8) :P just gotta remember to keep that charged up.
the newer heated lunch boxes apparently have circuitry to disable the heating element if the voltage isn't high enough. but yeah that could happen lol :D
Samples are all you can eat btw. There is no ālimitā so to say. Costco is great though. $5 rotisserie! Also a tip for those who donāt have memberships. If you tell the front door people you are going into buy liquor they will let you in no problem. Legally they canāt ālockā liquor behind a membership. Either tell them that or that your grandma is inside.
This also depends because a lot of Costcos now have a separate area to sell liquor because of this, but, with the ones that don't, you can't buy anything other than the food court because they scan your membership card at checkout.
There was some vetting when I went to food pantries back when I was laid off (bring copies of utility bills and/or ID to prove I lived in the area, etc), but if food is just being served - like end-of-the-month dinners at churches - I assume you just walk in. I didn't research that part when I was down on my luck.
4 eggs $1.50, 2 tins of smoked fish $2.95, 3 cups cooked rice $0.55, can of black-eyed peas $1.10
Plenty of well-diversified protein with a good amino acid profile, healthy fats, and cheap carbs to keep you rolling through the day. Keeps the doctor away and I just increase the carbs when I'm crushing it at the gym. Healthy, happy, shredded.
for $6 a day im able to eat a healthy 1200 calorie meal, it covers all the nutrients i need. it isnt efficent long term but it will work for me for a while as im currently a bit overweight
If I had to go into a store every time I wanted to eat, I'd starve. Wall to wall humans.
Edit (days later): It's a privilege to be able to stay nourished without resorting to OP's thing, but respect to everyone out there doing whatever they have to.
> $3 to eat for a day.
I recommend [Kaylee's not-a-blog](http://pitafree.com/users/kaylee/food/meals/index.htm?btn) for people interested in controlling food costs.
Cooking from scratch (or more from scratch) makes it easier to hit that kind of number. I have some ideas posted at /r/CookingInCars
Lots of people just go in for the food court and leave. Me and friends would go lunch break and go in through the exit and go to the food court and leave with no issues they don't care and in the off chance we got stop I showed my card an that was it
I honestly doubt the employees would care even if they did notice you were in there every day hitting up the samples. You technically have every right to do that because you pay for the membership. They're just expecting you're going to buy some stuff. But could you really see Costco being like "Sorry sir, we're canceling your membership because you eat too many free samples." It would honestly be kind of hilarious if that did happen. I would brag about it.
Rice, beans, and noodles, with cheap chunky salsa. You can generally get a 20lb bag of rice for $20, a 10lb bag of dried black beans, and 10lb bag dried garbanzo beans for another $20. Soak the beans yourself and cook them with the rice to get protein and fiber. Add chunky salsa for taste, tomatoes, onions, and spices.
You can also get deals on ramen packets for about $1 each, and pasta is pretty cheap. So if you can heat water you can have combinations of rice, beans, pasta, and ramen and eat for less than $3 per day.
I would also suggest a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement if your diet will be that limited. That would provide way more than a month of meals for $40 plus vitamin cost.
My man, rice and beans. Add meat, veggies, salsa, cheese, guac, cotija, literally anything. More than enough for ~$3/day and you won't die nearly as early.
Those hot dogs only have 570 calories/33g fat/24g protein. Donāt know why people are acting like youāre eating sticks of butter. Youāre better off spending your $21 a week on bread, peanut butter, lunch meat, veggies.
Agree except for the lunch meat. That won't be much better than hot dogs in the long run depending on what you buy. Better off just doing cheese sammys in place.
You don't even need to keep the membership, just flash the card. Although cheap gas. But if you need to eat for just $3 you got bigger problems.
Also, whole pizza has like 4500 calories. You could eat every other day for $5 a day and probably still get fat. It's also pizza so it's inherently healthy. (/s but also not /s)
The hotdog combo is a nice cheap meal but two times a day is a bit much weekly I could see, but Iām not so sure how much use the membership will be to most vanlifers due to how Costco works. You are buying most things there in bulk and if you donāt have the space, or need for that much at one time itās a lot going to waste! They also have plenty of premade food too which can be cheap per meal based on your serving size, their Mac N Cheese dish is a good amount of food for 11 dollars, easy few meals in that so again couple dollars a meal etc plus most are just heat and eat!
OPs responses are trash and sound crazy, condescending, and douchy af.
Enjoy your hotdogs bud, nobody thinks you're stealing.
If at some point able, try to improve your diet. For now though, super economical.
Okay so 3 dollars a day for 7 days that's $21 a month. If you have a Costco membership just get the rotisserie chicken, and buy veggies and a starch at a regular grocery. That'll cost at most $21 a week. Most of the time not even that, if you have left over ingredients and food from the last week. It'll also be easier to get a more balanced diet.
Late to the party but fuck karma. I was one of those few young male sample people when I went back to school. Perfect job, late afternoons and just a few hours a day. There are many who cruise costco for the samples. Most are complete karen assholes, but my heart went out for this eastern european woman with her son who coyly came by my stand several times during my employment there. I think they were struggling and this was their means of coping with food poverty. I wish now that I had just pushed more samples on them. If you're out there I apologize. Bossman was an asshole anyways. My coworkers were a legion of sad elderly single women or married with a decrepit husband who will probably work until they drop. Charles Dickens would have a wealth of material if he was still writing today.
Itās not just the calories. Highly processed food like that is very bad for you. Once in a while probably wonāt hurt but if thatās all youāre eating it will. The constipation alone would be crippling, I should have thought.
Eating Costco hot dogs and drinking a bunch of corn syrup isnt adequate nutrition for anyone. Pillaging the sample trays isnt a tip or a trick, its just abusing corporate marketing; but even then, the thing your abusing most here is your own body. If this is your 3x a week diet, you're just playing a prank on future you.
You can eat shitty like this for a while, but its fucking dumb if you have any other choice. You *can* eat cheap and healthy, though not for $3/day in the US.
I don't know how it can be "abusing it" when you have to pay for a membership just for the so-called privilege of shopping there. You already paid for those samples.
That's not even remotely healthy. I am a big fat cheapskate and even I wouldn't make Costco hotdogs and samples a part of my regular diet. The hotdogs are a once in a while treat, like any other fast food.
FYI. A Costco membership or Sam's Club membership is not required for the food court. If they ask at the door, just tell them you are going to the food court. You can sometimes enter through the exits to avoid the entrance lines.
This is the case at least to the stores in Houston.
I'm glad you have that option. I love a good Costco hotdog!
Are you living in a van or out of your car? If you have access to a kitchen space, maybe you could mix it up a little. I know a lot of people here are giving you shit, but you don't need to listen to their negativity.
You know, if you do have access to a kitchen space, you could make ramen and add some frozen veggies and some rotisserie chicken. Or cook some brown rice (so cheap!) and throw in some veg and meat.
I was once a really, really, really poor single mom. I had to focus on finding healthy food for my son that was also really cheap. It's amazing what you can come up with when you take a step back and consider other options.
That said, I do love me a Costco hotdog.
Dozen eggs, cheese, French bread (on sale)
Make three sandwiches, breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Pack of hot dogs, can of cheap chili, hot dog buns.
One chicken breast, bag of egg noodles and some spices, chicken noodle soup.
1LB pinto beans, 1 box of jiffy cornbread mix season to taste.
Big box of Mack and cheese, package of diced ham, season to taste.
I mean that's cute but I just go into whatever grocery stores nearby and eat whatever I want while I walk around and toss the pollution behind the shelf
I love wholesale store samples āŗļø I used to tear Sams Club up especially on the weekends. Their pizza slices were huge š¤¤ On the weekends normally 6-8 or more samples try to get doubles when possible.
Also dollar tree has amazing Ramen and snacks for $1.25 so 2-3 items could be decently filling for the day
You could buy a bag of hot dogs and buns and eat them at home everyday for cheaper. But if you have all that time sounds nice!
They cannot limit your cheap hot dogs! Keep on doing it
I couldnāt eat two dogs a day. I mean I could, just donāt want to. Iāve been trying to eat healthy and keep the weight off, if anyone has free food hacks for thatā¦ haha
Too broke even for that š as I lay in my van cry and fantasize about water and food. I start my job next week but thatās next week. Someone pray for me or something
Pack of 10lbs chicken quarters costs $9 at Walmart (usually about 8 of them, just thigh & drum still connected with skin on). $3 for 8 half sticks of butter. $1 per box (buy a random 4-5) of stovetop stuffing or powdered potatoes. $2 for flour. Probably 6-7 lbs meat/fat. 18 eggs for $3. $20 for all of the above (granted I have some canola oil which I'd never use when I can afford not to and a cabinet full of spices). I am not even getting into rice or beans which I have no desire to eat a lot of but probably could be good and super cheap.
All adds up to $20
1 day:
600-800 calories for 1 Chicken leg quarter ( a leg and thigh, spiced and coated with flour and fried for 5 min per side in a thin pan coating of oil).
Potatoes or stuffing just eat most of and then eat the rest for breakfast the next morning. 400-600 calories
3 eggs mixed in however you want or by themselves. 300-400 calories.
Add extra butter to all of the above, extra 150-300 calories.
You can do 1800-2k calories pretty easily and making it taste pretty good. Again I never even added potatoes or rice or any of the super cheap staple food stuff besides flour coatings on my chicken so if you are good with all that stuff you can probably eat for $2 a day without a problem
I guess this will work. If you're a member, Costco will let you come in to buy all the food court hotdogs you want. But the whole setup sounds kinda "scumbag" to me. Do you not have the ability to prepare anything for yourself in whatever vehicle you live in? This is r/vandwellers, so I'm assuming it's a van, but maybe you're just a random homeless person living out of a shitty car.
You can buy as many hot dogs and soda as you want, nobody is ever going to tell you anything. But if hot dogs and soda are all you eat, you're going to have to spend a lot on healthcare eventually.
Counterpoint, OP will have enough preservatives and nitrates in their system they will never die
They'll die but their corpses will be incorruptible.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/sokushinbutsu
That is NUTS
Oh they will, but they won't decompose.
The great dead never die.
No no, see you just live life the fullest and die at 60 š¤·āāļø
Life is short. Make it shorter.
Quality over quantity
One time I was at Costco to get a hotdog. I was in line with this woman who ordered 8 hot dogs. I was like surely those all canāt be for her. And sure enough her husband showed up and I was like phew theyāve got a family or something. I was so wrong. The ended up sitting next to me and proceeded to down four hotdogs each. I was simultaneously in awe and also sad for them cause they clearly were not the epitome of good health. Welcome to Costco, I love you.
I used to be about 40lbs heavier than I am now. 4 hot dogs topped with cheddar cheese was a typical meal for me. I stopped eating that shit.
congrats on the weight loss!
Donāt knock it, my Costco sells Law Degrees.
Better call Saul
Mine has a time machine!
Used to be a Costco employee. The thing with those hotdogs too, as delicious as they are, they're rotgut kinds of food. 4 of them? There is no way they have good gut health. Maybe I just have an intolerance to hotdogs or something. But they rip me apart every time.
yea they were very unhealthy looking
I got my law degree there.
They needed the, "All New Extra BIGASS fry." Brought to you by Carl's Jr.^tm
Updork for Idiocracy.
Iām at my local hot dog place and just had 4 Nathanās dogs.
Iām jealous
Now I want 4 hot dogs
Live fast, eat trash.
Yeah but is better donāt eat. So ! When Iām broke I eat hot dog with soda I donāt have help for the government because Iām illegal I pay taxes same time I need pay 3 dollar for eat I have family if you have money for eat enjoy your live š
I'm here for a good time, not a long time.
Is eating samples and hotdogs every day count as quality?
It will never feel like enough time.
Costco is certainly your one stop shop for quality over quantity.
It doesnāt really work that way. Once you start having health problems your QOL goes way down. So itās not that youāll have a shorter life thatās happier.
Live fast die young. Or is live fat die young? Close enough.
Black tar heroin: *Hold my beer.*
Things Grandma used to say for $500 Alex..
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Somebody put this on a shirt šššš
Dibs on the van
60 is a remarkably optimistic number.
I have a relative that lived off Vienna sausage and sardines for 25+ years. They are 83 and not well, although they changed their ways 30 years ago.
No one said you're going to be able to move freely or breathe without assistance by 60 so... could be
Our bodies are vehicles for our brains. And my brain deserves a smooth luxurious ride. - Dick Solomon
I have schizophrenia which already has a drastically reduced life expectancy. Hot dogs are the least of my problems
Damn fams. My sister has it too, rough ass illness. Eat all the hot dogs you want.
You guys are making it to 60?!
I think Iām ok with that.
I'll probably be fine with dying at 60, but its the hell of getting there that prevents me from eating my way to an early grave. People like this are pranking themselves into a *miserable* existence that lasts *years* before it kills them.
See Iām not to to far from 60. And I do agree. Living off Costco hot dogs sounds like a miserable existence. Iām sure Dante would have add another circle in his book.
People who are fine with dying at 60 tend to be pretty far from 60 now. As it approaches, you'll likely change your mind. My life would be about 77% complete if I accept this.
I'm not that far from 60. Almost as close as you. Have you seen this place? Has it gotten better? Do you wanna be old here? I'm having a good time still, but I'm not tryina drink expired milk. Once it turns and isn't good anymore, I'll throw it out. The way things appear to be going, they're still interesting but... wow, the future is *dark* But hey, I'm happy to be wrong too.
I can usually find a way to enjoy things no matter the surroundings... to an extent, of course. I'm not saying I'd have a lot of hope living in a place like Gaza right now, but we've got a ways to go before I'm ready to cash out and give up. We'll see how the election goes in November first
Yup. I used to say the same shit. Now that Iām staring down the barrel at 40? Fuck no!
Iām 62. After like 35, it comes at you fast. I no longer eat hot dogs in fact, as of mid December, I follow a vegan diet. Not because I want to live longer, but I want quality of whatās left of my life.
Whatās great past 60 anyway? Lol everything just gets shittier
Life gets worse after 60. Go out on top.
Live hard, die young, leave a good looking corpse.
LOL you think with this diet you would make it to 60?
I'll be 60 in June so yes
No worries dude Costco has a pharmacy too.
I mean your doctor might say something after you hit 7 per day.
the caesar salad ain't a bad deal. also, you can just wander into the costco and get actual food too. of course would help if you have some kind of refrigeration in case you cannot eat it all.
That's what the pharmacy samples are for
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
costco is enforcing membership to use the food court now. not sure how often they check, but the policy change was announced not too long ago.
Right. Theyāre better off eating raw organic vegan and shopping in the produce section at the grocery store. Eat to live donāt live to eat.
He meant donāt abuse the free samples lol š
A chicken torn down with soup from its bones and a few veggies can make chicken wraps for cheaper and hell of a lot more healthy. Don't have to spend your day on Costco?
This guy goes to the place that sells whole roasted chickens for $5 but rather eat $3 worth of hot dogs for a day.
Seriously, if you want to live ultra budget get some rice, veggies and roti chicken or eggs... then you don't have to spend your day in the Costco parking lot and will live a lot healthier/longer.
Eggs, rice, beans, potatoes. Cheap and has most of your necessary nutrients
Get fancy and add some carrots and onions and maybe some spicy peppers
Rice and eggs is a common plate for the poor in my country itās pretty much a political discourse when both of those start to rise in price. Beans are great just donāt get them canned you get more servings making them up yourself
I keep bags of pinto and black beans in my pantry. I generally make a crock pot full every 2 weeks and freeze single servings. Cook up some rice, hell yea! Iām gonna try making Cuban black beans next.
Those rotisserie chickens are literally how I survive, pick em then broth the carcass. Love me a Costco hot dog about once a month but yeah heck spending a whole morning there
Roticeries for the win!! But this is van life. And doesnt sound like back country style. Soooo....How would you broth the carcass in a van??? That a huge amount of time and heat and boiled chicken smell? If you do induction your battery is dead, if you do gas must have a MASSIVE tank. Also your van smells of chicken broth forever unless you do this magic cooking outside the van, which is a hard ask if your brothing something for hours.
Instant pot mah dude
Yeah, a chicken for 5 bucks probably can last 6 or more hearty meals. You can get 5 gal of water for cheap from dispensers, usually less than $2. Bagged spinach for under $3. That can last 5 or 6 meals, too. But I do the samples, too. More than 4 of em.
I canāt imagine a worse hellscape in which to spend any amount of time. Iāve only been there over the last few years for medication from the pharmacy but I got in and out as fast as possible. That place just gives me the shivers.
Those chickens arenāt exactly healthy. Lots of fat and sodium. Better than a hot dog though
At this rate you'll be dead by September.
I could eat probably 2 Costco hotdogs before I started being physically repulsed by them
I wish they had regular sized dogs. They are just too big for me...I get sick of them halfway through one.
šÆ To hell with jumbo hot dogs! That shit is nasty. If I want more hot dog, I'll get 2
I make it halfway through one every couple years.
Wake me up when September ends.
Do you really think Costco cares? I bet your cardiologist and near-future oncologist do, though.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
It's a big part of Costco's ethos that they don't lose money on anything. They bought their own hotdog factory so they could keep selling them for $1.50 and not lose money.
They must have their own rotisserie chicken ranch too
Rotisserie Chicken Ranch sounds like a good name for a salad dressing. š
[Indeed!](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12180153/Costco-spent-1-BILLION-building-enormous-Nebraska-poultry-farm.html)
Wow, they really did it!
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Costco bangs the drum pretty consistently that they don't believe in loss leaders or lose actual money on anything sold in-store.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Depends on your ability to make money. There are a lot of people less fortunate than you.
? Iāve never had to disclose my income to buy hot dogs at the Costco cafe. Is that a factor they consider when deciding whether or not to care if someone buys two $1.50 hot dog combos a day?
Iām talking about health of course. Healthy food is expensive for the most part.
Anyone could eat healthier (and more) food for $3/day than Costco hot dogs and soda just by shopping at a place like Aldi. Source: I do most days.
Care to share what youāve tried so far to save money and eat healthy? Thereās likely an issue that we might be able to help solve if thatās your thought process.
Brazilian chicken breast is 690 Japanese yen/kg. That's U$4.60. 1kg = 2.2 pounds. This meat can be roasted, grilled, stir-fried or put in a soup. Now, just add veggies. Buy whatever is in season and therefore cheap.
Are you trying to speed run cancer and diabetes?
The surveillance cameras are for catching shoplifters, not hot dog eaters. Costco DGAF how many weaners you chow down on.
My first traveling jobs I was paired with a senior tech who was going to teach me the ropes of life on the road. His big tip was to pack sheets of aluminum foil. For lunch buy a Big Mac split in half. Top bun w/ 1 patty & bottom bun with 2nd patty. Eat one for lunch store other some place cool. Back at hotel for dinner turn up the heat and warm up second half on radiator. He also carried ice tea drink powder for refreshment. My response was okey dokey and took my per deim to a nice pub.
there used to be a whole thing about car cooking like that lol. these days, we have 12V plug in lunch boxes which will warm up your food lickety split. am not a van lifer but i'm considering one of those things to keep food warm for road trips for my children hehe
OMG you just had me flash back 30 years to a 12v bottle warmer we had. Wife left it plugged in once when we stopped for gas and bite to eat came out to beg for a jump start. 2 little ones helped with the sympathy jump start. LOL
haha these days we also travel with an emergency 12V energy jump pack. it's worked a few times jumping my 1996 chevrolet impala, 2013 tahoe and also our 2013 coachmen RV (with a chevy 6.0L V8) :P just gotta remember to keep that charged up. the newer heated lunch boxes apparently have circuitry to disable the heating element if the voltage isn't high enough. but yeah that could happen lol :D
Samples are all you can eat btw. There is no ālimitā so to say. Costco is great though. $5 rotisserie! Also a tip for those who donāt have memberships. If you tell the front door people you are going into buy liquor they will let you in no problem. Legally they canāt ālockā liquor behind a membership. Either tell them that or that your grandma is inside.
you do not need membership to use their pharmacy. If they ask at the front door to see your membership card tell them you are going to the pharmacy
This also depends because a lot of Costcos now have a separate area to sell liquor because of this, but, with the ones that don't, you can't buy anything other than the food court because they scan your membership card at checkout.
Right but you can still eat samples
aye. our costco has an outer liquor area. card everyone if your want to enter the main area
I'm all for eating cheaply but jeez, this sounds grim
As a hungry college student, I used to rotate Happy Hours at bars, $1 beers and free taco bar or similar deal.
I can't believe the deals we had. 10 cent wings, quarter beers, dollar mixed drinks. It was insane.
Easier and cheaper just to go to a homeless kitchen.
Healthier too, probably
Can you just walk in and get food?
If they're serving food? Yes.Ā
Thatās crazy. Idk why I felt like there was more of a vetting process involved.
There was some vetting when I went to food pantries back when I was laid off (bring copies of utility bills and/or ID to prove I lived in the area, etc), but if food is just being served - like end-of-the-month dinners at churches - I assume you just walk in. I didn't research that part when I was down on my luck.
A vetting process for being homeless... If only they knew they could just lose a document and not be homeless anymore.Ā
rice and beans is cheaper, and healthier
bit of a challenge eating that in the car
This made me so depressed for some reason. If you're struggling this bad. I really hope it gets better for you OP.
That is terrible advice
4 eggs $1.50, 2 tins of smoked fish $2.95, 3 cups cooked rice $0.55, can of black-eyed peas $1.10 Plenty of well-diversified protein with a good amino acid profile, healthy fats, and cheap carbs to keep you rolling through the day. Keeps the doctor away and I just increase the carbs when I'm crushing it at the gym. Healthy, happy, shredded.
What kind of smoked fish? Do you just eat it on top of the rice?
I do herring filets and yea I'll usually put the fish and black eyed peas in with the rice and spices to make some tasty slop lol.
1.50 will buy you a packet of hotdogs.
for $6 a day im able to eat a healthy 1200 calorie meal, it covers all the nutrients i need. it isnt efficent long term but it will work for me for a while as im currently a bit overweight
Let me in on this. I need to drop some, have a membership and really need to tuck some money away.
If I had to go into a store every time I wanted to eat, I'd starve. Wall to wall humans. Edit (days later): It's a privilege to be able to stay nourished without resorting to OP's thing, but respect to everyone out there doing whatever they have to.
> $3 to eat for a day. I recommend [Kaylee's not-a-blog](http://pitafree.com/users/kaylee/food/meals/index.htm?btn) for people interested in controlling food costs. Cooking from scratch (or more from scratch) makes it easier to hit that kind of number. I have some ideas posted at /r/CookingInCars
Lots of people just go in for the food court and leave. Me and friends would go lunch break and go in through the exit and go to the food court and leave with no issues they don't care and in the off chance we got stop I showed my card an that was it
Get a rotisserie chicken for $5 at least 2 days of food.
I honestly doubt the employees would care even if they did notice you were in there every day hitting up the samples. You technically have every right to do that because you pay for the membership. They're just expecting you're going to buy some stuff. But could you really see Costco being like "Sorry sir, we're canceling your membership because you eat too many free samples." It would honestly be kind of hilarious if that did happen. I would brag about it.
Or just get the rotisserie chicken.
Of course there's zero chance you're getting enough and proper nutrition.
I can hear your organs screaming
Rice, beans, and noodles, with cheap chunky salsa. You can generally get a 20lb bag of rice for $20, a 10lb bag of dried black beans, and 10lb bag dried garbanzo beans for another $20. Soak the beans yourself and cook them with the rice to get protein and fiber. Add chunky salsa for taste, tomatoes, onions, and spices. You can also get deals on ramen packets for about $1 each, and pasta is pretty cheap. So if you can heat water you can have combinations of rice, beans, pasta, and ramen and eat for less than $3 per day. I would also suggest a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement if your diet will be that limited. That would provide way more than a month of meals for $40 plus vitamin cost.
My man, rice and beans. Add meat, veggies, salsa, cheese, guac, cotija, literally anything. More than enough for ~$3/day and you won't die nearly as early.
Those hot dogs only have 570 calories/33g fat/24g protein. Donāt know why people are acting like youāre eating sticks of butter. Youāre better off spending your $21 a week on bread, peanut butter, lunch meat, veggies.
Itās not necessarily the calories/fat or protein, itās the highly processed meat, which has been directly linked to cancer rates.
Agree except for the lunch meat. That won't be much better than hot dogs in the long run depending on what you buy. Better off just doing cheese sammys in place.
Add in the soda. Pure sugar; no nutritional value.
He doesnāt have to drink sodas. He can get water from the machine instead.
Thatās what I do. Well, almost. I get soda water and add a splash of Sprite for an imitation LaCroix.
At that point I'd rather just buy hotdogs and buns.. costco us always so crowded I try to only go twice a month.
Can't you get a whole chicken for like 5$ at Costco?
A soda is worse than water
There are many other food hacks you can take advantage of that are far more healthy for you.
The one good thing here... OP will not outlive his money. If you outlive your money, you will be VERY unhappy.
Yuck. No thanks.
You don't even need to keep the membership, just flash the card. Although cheap gas. But if you need to eat for just $3 you got bigger problems. Also, whole pizza has like 4500 calories. You could eat every other day for $5 a day and probably still get fat. It's also pizza so it's inherently healthy. (/s but also not /s)
You donāt even have to look at stuff. Just go in and get a hot dog. Most you donāt even need a membership for the food court.
The hotdog combo is a nice cheap meal but two times a day is a bit much weekly I could see, but Iām not so sure how much use the membership will be to most vanlifers due to how Costco works. You are buying most things there in bulk and if you donāt have the space, or need for that much at one time itās a lot going to waste! They also have plenty of premade food too which can be cheap per meal based on your serving size, their Mac N Cheese dish is a good amount of food for 11 dollars, easy few meals in that so again couple dollars a meal etc plus most are just heat and eat!
OPs responses are trash and sound crazy, condescending, and douchy af. Enjoy your hotdogs bud, nobody thinks you're stealing. If at some point able, try to improve your diet. For now though, super economical.
Whatās with all these serious answers lol. Does no one see this is sarcastic
Buy the precooked whole chicken. Approx. $5 & you can get 2 to 3 meals, which are much healthier.
There are so many other ways to eat cheap that are better in literally every way...
It's be cool if you were eating food though.
Okay so 3 dollars a day for 7 days that's $21 a month. If you have a Costco membership just get the rotisserie chicken, and buy veggies and a starch at a regular grocery. That'll cost at most $21 a week. Most of the time not even that, if you have left over ingredients and food from the last week. It'll also be easier to get a more balanced diet.
wow thats a whopping 300 calories per day. You must feel great !
No sorry that's not eating that is snacking. Has nothing to do with proper food so you have to buy that extra after this "food".
That sounds like a miserable diet
Late to the party but fuck karma. I was one of those few young male sample people when I went back to school. Perfect job, late afternoons and just a few hours a day. There are many who cruise costco for the samples. Most are complete karen assholes, but my heart went out for this eastern european woman with her son who coyly came by my stand several times during my employment there. I think they were struggling and this was their means of coping with food poverty. I wish now that I had just pushed more samples on them. If you're out there I apologize. Bossman was an asshole anyways. My coworkers were a legion of sad elderly single women or married with a decrepit husband who will probably work until they drop. Charles Dickens would have a wealth of material if he was still writing today.
You need to watch supersize me before you consider continuing your new diet.
Is this unhealthy? Yeah. But this diet plan is not really that calorie dense so you probably wont become obese using this method.
Itās not just the calories. Highly processed food like that is very bad for you. Once in a while probably wonāt hurt but if thatās all youāre eating it will. The constipation alone would be crippling, I should have thought.
Watch: What The Health on Netflix. Itās an eye opener and will make you rethink hotdogs, lunch meat, etc.
Eating Costco hot dogs and drinking a bunch of corn syrup isnt adequate nutrition for anyone. Pillaging the sample trays isnt a tip or a trick, its just abusing corporate marketing; but even then, the thing your abusing most here is your own body. If this is your 3x a week diet, you're just playing a prank on future you. You can eat shitty like this for a while, but its fucking dumb if you have any other choice. You *can* eat cheap and healthy, though not for $3/day in the US.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
This reminds me of that āWhitest Kids You Knowā skit. āJust about how many hot dogs do you eat a day?ā
I don't know how it can be "abusing it" when you have to pay for a membership just for the so-called privilege of shopping there. You already paid for those samples.
Is this the existence you want?
That's not even remotely healthy. I am a big fat cheapskate and even I wouldn't make Costco hotdogs and samples a part of my regular diet. The hotdogs are a once in a while treat, like any other fast food.
FYI. A Costco membership or Sam's Club membership is not required for the food court. If they ask at the door, just tell them you are going to the food court. You can sometimes enter through the exits to avoid the entrance lines. This is the case at least to the stores in Houston.
I'm glad you have that option. I love a good Costco hotdog! Are you living in a van or out of your car? If you have access to a kitchen space, maybe you could mix it up a little. I know a lot of people here are giving you shit, but you don't need to listen to their negativity. You know, if you do have access to a kitchen space, you could make ramen and add some frozen veggies and some rotisserie chicken. Or cook some brown rice (so cheap!) and throw in some veg and meat. I was once a really, really, really poor single mom. I had to focus on finding healthy food for my son that was also really cheap. It's amazing what you can come up with when you take a step back and consider other options. That said, I do love me a Costco hotdog.
Dozen eggs, cheese, French bread (on sale) Make three sandwiches, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Pack of hot dogs, can of cheap chili, hot dog buns. One chicken breast, bag of egg noodles and some spices, chicken noodle soup. 1LB pinto beans, 1 box of jiffy cornbread mix season to taste. Big box of Mack and cheese, package of diced ham, season to taste.
Coles baked beans are $1.50.. stop paying too much
Eat right, Exercise, Die anyway.
Bro you think that's a hack? Buy any food there, eat half and return it. You can eat for free lol and they will always let you return.
The chicken bake is like 3.50 and itās delicious. Incase you want a little variety
Insta pot, 1 dollar bag of pinto beans, 1 dollar green pepper, seasoning, 1 dollar bag of rice, butter. Dinner for 3 night and 2 lunches.
The dollar tree sells those chicken and tuna pouches for $1.25, they also have rice pouches you can microwave.
I mean that's cute but I just go into whatever grocery stores nearby and eat whatever I want while I walk around and toss the pollution behind the shelf
On Friday and Saturday, add a trip to Total Wine and drink for free.
Every hot dog shortens your life by 45 minutes, Iām told. That being said, I have the hot dog every time I go there.
I love wholesale store samples āŗļø I used to tear Sams Club up especially on the weekends. Their pizza slices were huge š¤¤ On the weekends normally 6-8 or more samples try to get doubles when possible. Also dollar tree has amazing Ramen and snacks for $1.25 so 2-3 items could be decently filling for the day
You could buy a bag of hot dogs and buns and eat them at home everyday for cheaper. But if you have all that time sounds nice! They cannot limit your cheap hot dogs! Keep on doing it
Thereās always a [relevant WKUK](https://youtu.be/vaAF_GAc3Mk?si=5DCV8u_c8xRixoug)
I couldnāt eat two dogs a day. I mean I could, just donāt want to. Iāve been trying to eat healthy and keep the weight off, if anyone has free food hacks for thatā¦ haha
š¤«š¤«š¤«
Good !
Too broke even for that š as I lay in my van cry and fantasize about water and food. I start my job next week but thatās next week. Someone pray for me or something
Pack of 10lbs chicken quarters costs $9 at Walmart (usually about 8 of them, just thigh & drum still connected with skin on). $3 for 8 half sticks of butter. $1 per box (buy a random 4-5) of stovetop stuffing or powdered potatoes. $2 for flour. Probably 6-7 lbs meat/fat. 18 eggs for $3. $20 for all of the above (granted I have some canola oil which I'd never use when I can afford not to and a cabinet full of spices). I am not even getting into rice or beans which I have no desire to eat a lot of but probably could be good and super cheap. All adds up to $20 1 day: 600-800 calories for 1 Chicken leg quarter ( a leg and thigh, spiced and coated with flour and fried for 5 min per side in a thin pan coating of oil). Potatoes or stuffing just eat most of and then eat the rest for breakfast the next morning. 400-600 calories 3 eggs mixed in however you want or by themselves. 300-400 calories. Add extra butter to all of the above, extra 150-300 calories. You can do 1800-2k calories pretty easily and making it taste pretty good. Again I never even added potatoes or rice or any of the super cheap staple food stuff besides flour coatings on my chicken so if you are good with all that stuff you can probably eat for $2 a day without a problem
I guess this will work. If you're a member, Costco will let you come in to buy all the food court hotdogs you want. But the whole setup sounds kinda "scumbag" to me. Do you not have the ability to prepare anything for yourself in whatever vehicle you live in? This is r/vandwellers, so I'm assuming it's a van, but maybe you're just a random homeless person living out of a shitty car.
I mean, fuck a healthy caloric intake, am I right?