£wise, spar or cafe?

[shutupthepunx]

i usually eat a pizza/burger/takeway etc while bikepacking/touring when i wana 'splash out' or if in realllllly pooped and feel like i deserve it. these things are seen as expensive treats in my world.

otherwise its into the shop and get some tortilla wraps, pack of ham, block of cheese etc etc. although i am wondering if these quick and easy foods end up being more expensive/less filling than if i was to do as above?

im sure it depends on what i buy in't shop, and im aware that some of those things will last more than one meal (but they u gotta carry them, and often i could easily eat the lot - ham for example u need a whole pack per sandwich if u wana experience any taste of ham at all.

thoughts?

[shutupthepunx]

i guess i just feel like sometimes my spar visit can end up costing a fair bit for not that much food and that a trip to the greasyspoon (or huddersfield chipshop i hear they do huge portions) might have been more worth.

[sean_iow]

Don't forget that if you eat at a cafe there's added value, indoor seating (remember that) out of the rain/wind/cold/sun plus a loo.

As much as I like sitting on the kerb at a petrol station forecourt eating a cold pie sometimes a chair and some respite from the weather is needed. Depending on the cafe it can be just as cheap as buying a load of snacks from a Spar if you are careful with the menu selection.

[Dean]

Warm food is vital in winter and is well work spending more money for (plus sitting inside). I like flatbreads and cheese/salami or tortillas and Nutella in my framebag as I can eat whenever I want and not have to push when tired/hungry to find civilisation.

[Loki]

Normally I bring main meals with me, snacks I get from local stores or a bakers, Co-ops are a god send in the southwest, grab a sandwich on the go, I stopped for a pizza once while in France, the weather was cold, damp it was epic.

[Lazarus]

just be grateful you have choice -though given the increase in "plant based diet" I may now be able to buy stuff rather than have to carry all my own food [ I dont think I would take the risk though]

[directdrive]

As above really, I think it can be well worth getting some warm scran down you. Plus when I'm doing a shop ahead of a trip I always find myself spending more than I thought on the usual breakfast/lunch/dinner stuff - finding a balance between calorofic density, packability, and palatability usually ends up being pretty pricey for me anyway.

I tend to save the pizza for the first meal when I get back and scarf it down as a treat

[ScotRoutes]

Sitting down to enjoy some food (and drink) is one of the things I enjoy most when bikepacking. It's not a bloody race. It's often a chance to strike up a conversation with a local and get a fresh perspective on the world.

[RIP]

Sitting down to enjoy some food (and drink) is one of the things I enjoy most when bikepacking. It's not a bloody race. It's often a chance to strike up a conversation with a local and get a fresh perspective on the world.

I'm in your camp too 'Routes of course. But I guess part of the colour of This Place is that for some it is a bloody race . I'm not 100% sure quite why but it's presumably not because they're racing to get the best seat in the cafe or to give the other patrons a chance to talk rubbish with smelly weirdos like us lot .

[Verena]

Sitting down to enjoy some food (and drink) is one of the things I enjoy most when bikepacking. It's not a bloody race. It's often a chance to strike up a conversation with a local and get a fresh perspective on the world.

I agree.

By the way, there's pictures everywhere of bikepackers tucking into pizzas straight from the cardboard box standing or sitting around some place - I've been really looking forward to that, yet somehow have never managed it - even in Germany where there are good, cheap pizza places literally on every street corner!!

[lune ranger]

Sitting down to enjoy some food (and drink) is one of the things I enjoy most when bikepacking. It's not a bloody race. It's often a chance to strike up a conversation with a local and get a fresh perspective on the world.

I agree.

By the way, there's pictures everywhere of bikepackers tucking into pizzas straight from the cardboard box standing or sitting around some place - I've been really looking forward to that, yet somehow have never managed it - even in Germany where there are good, cheap pizza places literally on every street corner!!

I always go very traditional in Germany and go straight for the Kebab shop, best donner this side of the Bosphorous

[Bearbonesnorm]

I do like a bit of both. Can't beat a cafe for breakfast and I generally find I stock up from the Spar sometime during the day in preparation for evening. If I'm with Mike, then an average day can contain 3 cafes, 2 pubs and any number of shops

[Verena]

Sitting down to enjoy some food (and drink) is one of the things I enjoy most when bikepacking. It's not a bloody race. It's often a chance to strike up a conversation with a local and get a fresh perspective on the world.

I agree.

By the way, there's pictures everywhere of bikepackers tucking into pizzas straight from the cardboard box standing or sitting around some place - I've been really looking forward to that, yet somehow have never managed it - even in Germany where there are good, cheap pizza places literally on every street corner!!

I always go very traditional in Germany and go straight for the Kebab shop, best donner this side of the Bosphorous

O yessssss

[fatbikephil]

Both. Go into a cafe and get some hot food and cake and a good cup of splosh, then go into the spar shop and buy a load more food and fizz and eat that a few miles down the trail. Don't stint you need the energy.