In our house, we love pizza. Cheese pizza, white pizza, mushroom pizza, tomato pizza…well, you get the idea. Served up with a side salad, it is a quick and easy meal. Because we enjoy it so much, I’ve been on a mission to find ways for our family to have it as cheaply as possible. Here are some tried and true methods for saving money on pizza.
Make it yourself
Making it yourself is my absolutely favorite way to save money on pizza. I estimate that I can make two large (16-inch) pizzas for about $2-3 in ingredients, depending on just which standard or exotic toppings we add. For easy preparation, I use my electric bread maker to make the pizza dough. With the bread machine doing all of the work of kneading and waiting for the dough to rise, I find I am much more motivated to make pizza from scratch than if I had to do all of it by hand. Store brand canned pizza sauce, bulk cheese, a little olive oil makes a great basic pizza for very little expense.
The deli section
A little known secret for inexpensive pizza can be found at the deli or “take out cafe” section of your grocery store. The raw pizza is available with different toppings and sauces. You simply take it home and bake it yourself in fifteen minutes. I usually wait for a buy one get one free sale. Last night we were running late with errands before dinner, so I picked up two of the deli’s bake-at-home pizza’s for only $4.59 total!
Take out the frugal way
If you are a die hard take out pizza fan, there are still many ways to say money. Check your mailbox for coupons, of course, or call your favorite pizza place and ask to be put on the mailing list for coupons and discounts. Some chain restaurants offer VIP reward programs. For an annual fee (which you get back in a discount on your first purchase), you qualify for free pizza if you buy a minimum amount of pizza during any given month.
For private pizza places ask about specials. Most of the pizza places near me offer deals on Tuesdays, from half price pizzas to free toppings to kids eat free.
Finally, if you aspire to be a die-hard frugal family, show up right before closing and ask for a deal. At the end of the night, the pizza place usually throws away whatever pizza is leftover before they lock up. So, if you show up late in the evening, they may even give you the leftovers for free. At the very least, they will probably be happy to include all of the extra leftovers with your regular order at no additional charge, or give you a huge discount. I know one family that has a weekly pizza night using this method. Sometimes they get so much extra pizza that they freeze it.
What is your favorite way to save on pizza?
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