Anela Malik can’t name a single dish that stood out from her five-hour lunch in the summer of 2024 in Lima, Peru, at Central, which topped the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list in 2023. Even so, the $500-per-person dining experience was worth every penny, she said.
While it wasn’t the best meal she has ever had, for Ms. Malik, a 34-year-old influencer and the author of “American Soul: The Black History of Food in the United States,” the meal’s theatrical elements were “almost like going to a show.” Servers told her about how ingredients were sourced and how each dish “has historically been eaten,” she said.
With signs of a weakening economy, splurging may seem counterintuitive if you’re uncertain that your bank account can sustain the expenditure. But when done responsibly, thoughtful splurges for occasional indulgences can bring people joy even in turbulent financial times.
Ms. Malik said she saved for splurges by living frugally in her studio apartment in Washington, D.C., and using public transportation when traveling.
She favors spending on experiences over things. In 2023, she stayed at the Cayo Levantado Resort in the Dominican Republic, which cost $2,000, including transportation, for three days and two nights. She was already on the island visiting a friend, and it was her first birthday since her divorce. The only item on her agenda was to relax.
“I’m not the type of person who takes a lot of time off,” Ms. Malik said. She described the service at the resort as the “the essence of hospitality,” from an assigned person she could message on WhatsApp with requests to offers of a ride as she walked to the gym. She sees herself saving up for a similar vacation every few years.
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The post Splurging? In This Economy? Here’s How to do it Right. appeared first on New York Times.
