Packed lunch or home cooked meal? Not likely! Lebanon residents are eating out a whopping 11 times a week according to a new report by LivingSocial and YouGov. The social trends survey also suggests American food is the take-away favourite and that friends are beating family to the table as the preferred dining companion outside the home.  The report commissioned by local commerce company LivingSocial as part of its ongoing efforts to discover and share information about local social trends and behaviour, quizzed 1,131 members on their dining habits. The results provide a compelling insight into the tastes of local residents and a rundown of the nation’s favourite ways to satiate their appetites.American Food reigns supreme as Lebanon’s number one take-away
When it comes to preferred take-out options, Lebanon residents have more of a taste for American food than their local Lebanese cuisine. The survey revealed that 67% opt for American cuisine when ordering take-away, while pizza came in a close second with 56% choosing the cheesy favourite as a regular order. Arabic take-away was the third choice with 34% of respondents choosing the local cuisine. Only 24% selected Chinese food as a habitual order.

Friends for dinner is the winner
According to the results, residents in Lebanon eat out with their friends more than their family and spouses, with 79% saying they frequently dine out with their friends and 56% naming their family as their regular dining companions. Spouses follow not far behind family with 38% of respondents citing their other half as their dining partner outside the home. Business colleagues proved the least popular choice with only 27% of respondents choosing their colleagues for a meal date.

Cash is king 
The survey revealed that the majority of residents in Lebanon still choose cash over a credit card with 64% preferring to pay for their meal with paper currency, while only 23% use their credit card and 12% uses a debit card.  

Lebanon palates go international
Although the vast majority of those surveyed selected Arabic as a favourite food choice when dining out, with 72% frequenting restaurants offering the local cuisine, Italian and American were not far behind with 67% of respondents regularly choosing Italian and 64% choosing American as their preferred dine out options. 

Lebanon residents are experimental carnivores
Residents in Lebanon appear to be more adventurous in their dinning choices with 42% describing themselves as ‘experimental eaters’. They also have a penchant for meat with 35% referring to themselves as ‘meat lovers’. 

Men are from Mars, women are from Venus
Getting ready for Valentine’s Day and don’t know where to go? The study reveals that women’s overall second choice after local Arabic cuisine is Italian with 57% choosing Italian as a frequent choice, while men prefer BBQ & Pizza with 51% selecting the two as their regular choice for sit-down meals. If all the Italian restaurants are booked, fear not, as 44% of the female respondents also selected Chinese as a regular cuisine choice.