What a 43-Year-Old Server and Drag Queen Eats on $63 CAN in Toronto, Ontario

Welcome to The Receipt, a series documenting how Bon Appétit readers eat and what they spend doing it. Each food diary follows one anonymous reader’s week of expenses related to groceries, restaurant meals, coffee runs, and every bite in between. In this time of rising food costs, The Receipt reveals how folks—from different cities, with different incomes, on different schedules—are figuring out their food budgets.In today's Receipt, we follow a 43-year-old server and drag queen in Toronto, Ontario. Keep reading for his receipts.The financesWhat are your pronouns? he/himWhat is your occupation? Server, Drag QueenHow old are you? 43What city and state do you live in? Toronto, ONWhat is your annual salary, if you have one? Girl, I have no idea. Waiting tables brings in around $60K CAN, and performing in bars, nightclubs and drag brunches probably makes me another $3K, but all those sweat and glitter covered bills get stuffed under a mattress, so who knows?How much is one paycheck, after taxes? Let’s call it an even thousand dollars.How often are you paid? (e.g., weekly) Weekly or bi-weeklyWhat are your approximate fixed monthly expenses beyond food? (i.e., rent, subscriptions, bills)Rent: $1,200Rental utilities: $135Wifi: $42Apple Music: $11Crave, Prime Video and Disney+: $40Credit Cards: $550, and yes, it’s entirely for restaurants, groceries and wine.The dietDo you follow a certain diet or have dietary restrictions? I avoid salt and gluten as much as possibleWhat are the grocery staples you always buy, if any? Eggs, gluten-free pasta, bananas, bone broth, greens, yogurt. I almost always have boiled eggs ready in the fridge, a tub of yogurt, some dark berries, and bananas to keep me fueled up. If I’m going to cook, it’s pasta or meat and veggies.How often in a week do you dine out versus cook at home? I work in an upscale Italian restaurant and the food is exceptional. I eat there 3 or 4 times a week and have the cholesterol levels to prove it. At 50% off any menu items (minus the $128 porterhouse steak) it’s a bargain to eat delicious, mostly healthy cooked meals. I love going out socially or alone, and do so almost weekly.How often in a week did you dine out while growing up? Once a month? Rural Alberta didn’t have a ton of dining out choicesHow often in a week did your parents or guardians cook at home? Daily. My mom’s (and occasionally my dad’s) cooking was excellent. Nothing fancy, but a real meat-and-potatoes type menu that kept us goingThe expensesWeeks total: $529Restaurants and Cafes: $409.81Most Expensive Meal: Planta, Toronto. $199.28Least Expensive: Trattoria Mercatto, $12Number of restaurant meals: 7Grocery trips: 1The diaryMonday10 a.m. My annual sinus infection came early, and I’ve been sick since Saturday. I’m trying to break my morning caffeine habit, but today I’m too lazy and run down. I hydrate with lemon water while sipping an Americano with brown sugar. Between the coffee and the illness I don’t have much of an appetite. I forage on peanut butter and pumpkin seeds while shuffling around my apartment.4 p.m. A thought occurs to me: Let’s heal this body with some miso and wasabi. I order sushi from Kibo down the street. It’s take-out, so I am forced to don clothing and walk down the street. I pick up 2-for-1 dynamite rolls, chicken gyoza dumplings, miso soup, the obligatory green salad that comes with it all. and a spicy salmon combo. $44As I’m feeling sorry for myself on my walk back home, I stop at the corner store for a bottle of Blake Boulevard Sauvignon Blanc. $21Monday total: $65Tuesday10 a.m. I know that I have a shift at the restaurant today, so I'm holding my head up and pretending that I'm not at death's door. A banana and blueberry yogurt provide the gas I need to leave the house to get provisions.We’re out of coffee beans! I have two espresso machines because I am a complete coffee snob. Machine number 1, my favorite, is a DeLonghi manual espresso maker, a tall, silver tower with a handle on the side. I grind my own beans for this. Machine number 2 is a Nespresso Virtuo. It requires aluminum pods stuffed with coffee. It’s sleek and makes a lovely crema, but it’s never hot enough for me. The pods vary between $1.12 and $1.50 each.12 p.m. Fresh espresso beans from the coolest coffee place on my street, Krave. This is where I buy 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters “Organic Nostalgia Bio” in a 12oz bag. It’s expensive, so when I toss in a caramel miso cookie to go it’s $30 total.On the way home I stop in at St. Clair Avenue Fruit Market for some of my usuals: bok choy, celery, dates, rapini, bananas, and a container of feta, for fun. $31.753 p.m. Before work I load up on cold meds even though they make me feel like a bobble head. Somewhere between 4PM and 7PM I ask my chef to sneak me some arancini to avoid passing out while bringing some nice folks their wine and dinner. Our arancini are filled with mozzarella, rolled in a saffron risotto and plated with tomato sauce. Retail $24, but for me it’s $12.Tuesday total: $73.75Wednesday10 a.m. Americano, brown sugar, lemon water. I have a friend coming in from out of town and she is fully aware how ill I am, and I feel as though she may need a snack after her 2+ hour drive, so I pop down to another cute hot spot on my street, Le Bleu. I may or may not also have a huge crush on the owner, Iman. I pick up vegan baklava, vegan banana bread, a Caprese sandwich for her and prosciutto for me. I try to make small talk with Iman while he packs up my order, but he’s so handsome I end up muttering and mumbling my thank yous while I stumble out the door. $25.766 p.m. Reservations for 2 at a vegetarian restaurant, Planta, Toronto, in Yorkville. I am not a vegetarian. I had mid to low expectations. Guys, this place was incredible.Delicious regular and zero-proof cocktails. A “Cosmic Colada” for me: Coconut water, lemon, blueberry and pineapple. For my friend: the Tokyo Blossom made with sake, gin, lychee liquor and grapefruit tonic.The unagi eggplant was so good I almost ordered a second one; we also ordered spicy tuna roll (some kind of juiced-up watermelon substitution), miso soup, and bang bang broccoli. I ordered a chocolate brownie and a sticky toffee pudding for dessert—the latter was so big it was almost comical. They also stuffed an entire ice cream cone full of vanilla ice cream upside down onto my pudding. I finished about a quarter of it.$199.28 (with tip)Wednesday total: $225.04Thursday9 a.m. My guest and I both slept in, but that was our plan all along. We shuffle over to Krave for Americanos and cookies. It’s chilly, but we decide to sit on the patio anyway because that’s where all the cute dogs are. $17.After she leaves and the day progresses I realize I am in no shape to work. Thankfully someone takes my serving shift so I don’t have to go and cough all over our lovely patrons.6 p.m. My appetite has been suffering, but eventually I whip up one of my favorites: a bean medley, chickpea, celery, olive oil and feta salad.8 p.m. As the sun sets and the self pity sinks in deeper, I throw a trench coat over my pajamas and scurry down to the store to get another favorite, a bottle of Te Henga Sauvignon Blanc. $19.45Thursday total: $36.45Friday10 a.m. Another Americano and lemon water.1 p.m. At this point in the week I am so sick of tea I never want to see it again. I’ve been trying to stave off whatever I have with honey/lemon/ginger tea and I’m over it. That was lunch, I guess.8 p.m. Guilty pleasure time! I call in an order for Little Caesars Chicago Deep Dish Meat Treat pizza, an order of hot wings, and a ginger ale. Pure class and total nutrition. The good news is that while attempting to remain unseen, I happen to run into someone I’ve been chatting with on a dating app. Oh did I say good? I meant horrific. $39.77Friday total: $39.77Saturday10 a.m. Americano. Lemon Water. I’m a creature of habit, ok?12 p.m. Bananas, blueberries, leftover bean salad, ginger tea.3 p.m. I’m at work early, because we have new menu items. At pre-shift, the chef makes one of each and we discuss and sample it. A prime rib chuck burger with scamorza and tomato bomba, lamb pizza with basil pesto, steak tartare, Atlantic cod and potato risotto, and mushroom and pea stuffed ravioli. Some call this “product knowledge.” I call it a free meal(s).8:45 p.m. Despite all my newfound product knowledge, I still get hungry halfway through my shift. Chef makes me a bulgur, kale, and roasted beet salad with a 7oz flatiron steak. $2210:45 p.m. Shift done, head feeling like a block of ice, I sneak off to the market before heading home to grab a bottle of Squealing Pig Sauvignon Blanc. $22Saturday total: $44Sunday10 a.m. Pretty much right after I open my eyes I get a lovely text from a friend; “Wanna get breakfast?” She knows I’ve been sick and we haven’t caught up in a while. She is informed that I will be wearing my now-uniform of pajamas and trench coat.11 a.m. Three eggs, toast, and bacon from a pub by my house. No culinary awards will be given out here but it did what it was supposed to do. The bill for both meals with coffee and a couple of spicy Bloody Caesars came to $50.1:30 p.m. Americano4 p.m. Americano number two7 p.m. Another go-to when I’m feeling down or simply have the craving is to simmer some rice noodles in a broth and add miso paste. I stir in fresh chopped bok choy, green onions and a couple of cut-up hard boiled eggs. I think I’m gonna make it.Sunday total: $50