Ladies that Lunch… on a budget!

How to have an indulgent day out…without feeling guilty about the cost!

My friend and I only meet up once every couple of months so when we do see each other it’s a great excuse to treat ourselves. We usually meet in our local town for some food and a few drinks spending around £20-£30 each depending where we go. Recently we both had a Monday off work and decided to push the boat out a little and go somewhere different. After a bit of research I had a plan. We were to go to Knutsford in Cheshire for a boozy lunch date.

Knutsford is about 30 miles from us and is a lovely town full of nice bars, restaurants, boutiques and shops all within a five to ten minute walk from the train station. It was a perfect place for a ladies lunch date! I had of course planned our day out to include lots of offers and deals that would allow us to have a great day out without costing us much more than we would spend on a day out in our local town. Even if you don’t live anywhere near Knutsford you can still use some of the deals and tips I’ve listed in this post to have your own fabulous day out.

Transport:

Did you know you can save money by booking train tickets as a group rather than booking individually? An adult return ticket from Manchester to Knutsford costs £7.30 but if two people are travelling together it costs just £10.90 so just £5.45 each. When looking for train tickets don’t just settle for the first price that comes up, play about with things like the number of passengers and splitting the ticket between stations. You can save a few quid for the exact same journey which is just what we did!

Knutsford – First stop:

After a forty-five minute train journey we arrived in the picturesque town of Knutsford. We easily found our way into the town centre to our first stop: Freemasons pub. We were booked in for a Prosecco sharing platter that I bought and booked through Groupon. The deal included a bottle of prosecco, a sharer board of goodies and alcohol soaked fruits to add to our drinks. The deal was listed on Groupon for £19.95 reduced from the pubs usual price of £35; I used a promo code from Vouchercloud and paid just £16! If you find yourself in Knutsford, I highly recommend you give Freemasons a visit, its full of rustic charm with a modern twist and the staff are so friendly!

Lunch:

After sharing a full bottle of prosecco it was time for lunch. I had booked a table at The Botanist because they give new customers a free bottle of house wine when dining for the first time. We chose a bottle of Hazy View Chenin Blanc (priced at £17.50) as our freebie and opted for a deli board each for lunch. The boards are a brilliant lunch option, they come with a large fougasse bread and four small side dishes. The menu has twenty-two side dishes to choose from so there is something to suit all tastes and dietary requirements. We took our time nibbling through our deli boards and enjoying our wine – which was absolutely delicious. The staff were really attentive and didn’t once rush us despite us taking our time, a perk of midweek daytime dining. It’s not just The Botanist in Knutsford that offers the free wine deal, it’s all branches. Find your local here.

Cocktails round 1:

We left The Botanist and wandered down the road to Gusto. As it had just turned 5pm we were able to make the most of their BOGOF cocktail deal which runs from 5pm-7pm Monday-Friday. The cocktail menu was great with so much to choose from, we opted for an Elderflower and Peach Martini made with Grey Goose vodka; it was so tasty especially as it cost £8.50 for two! By this point we were a little giddy from and starting to plan how we could maintain a lifestyle of country living and dining out all the time. Plans included robbing a bank or marrying a rich man. Both a little ambitious. There are nineteen Gusto Restaurants around the country, have a look what your local has to offer here.

Cocktails round 2:

Our final stop was The Lost and Found, an amazing building with an equally impressive atmosphere. Harry Styles has been spotted dining at this particular venue in the last few months but sadly, there was no sight of him during our visit! The Lost and Found drinks menu is split into two sections, the ‘Lost’ menu and the ‘Found’ menu, between 5pm-8pm midweek all ‘Found’ cocktails are £5 (rather than the usual £7.95-£8.50). We opted for a Ruby Rose and a Kentucky Peach Smash, both usually £8.50. We were tempted to sample a few more from the menu but we had twenty minutes until our train got into the station.    We loved the Knutsford branch but if you’re not local there are two others, one in Leeds and the other in Birmingham.

Cost:

We had a brilliant day out in Knutsford, we arrived at 1pm, consumed lots of lovely food and drinks, caught up on weeks worth of chatting and finally got back on the train at 7pm. The cost of the whole day out? £66.86 for both of us! I think you’ll agree a whole day out – including transport, food and drinks – for £33.43 a person is amazing. The same day out without any deals or offers would have cost us a whopping £122.60 so it is definitely worth keeping an out for midweek offers and new customer deals.

I hope I’ve inspired you to do some exploring of somewhere a bit different or to venture out midweek to make the most of some amazing deals. Let me know in the comments below what towns you have visited and loved or about any fabulous deals you know of.

Happy Lunching and exploring,

 

Thrifty Clair x