How to eat cheap and outside of your comfort zone in Hawaii. While this may sound like an oxymoron, we're here to tell you that you can indeed eat affordably while on vacation in Hawaii; you just have to know where to go. We hear time and time again how expensive it is to eat here, especially when on vacation because you're so limited. But although we agree that the price of cereal at the store or that lunch along Waikiki is totally absurd, we also believe it can be avoided… well, at least a little. Because sometimes it's fun and okay to splurge, heck, isn't that why you created a budget for your vacation in the first place?

First off, eating out, if possible, should be minimized if you want to save money on food. With great condo rates, it's a good idea to look into your kitchen and at-home cooking options while on vacation. Leftovers and home cooked meals can save you a lot of money, not to mention home mixed cocktails too. This way you're not paying for inflated food and booze prices or gratuity, and you can make things exactly how you like them. But for the traveler who plans to eat almost every meal out, here are our top tips for eating cheap. Oh, and we recommend eating outside of your comfort zone too (which is usually very affordable) because what's a Hawaii vacation without a taste of spam or sushi?!!

If you're vacationing in Waikiki area, then we're sure you've seen those iconic ABC stores. While some people might be bothered by their abundance, we actually like to take advantage of it. Many of these stores offer quick, sustaining bites, such as hard-boiled eggs, fresh fruit, or granola bars. If you're looking for a snack throughout the day, we suggest stopping by your nearest ABC store and stocking up. Go for the cheaper stuff too, like musubis, arare, fruit, or nuts. And since we're on the topic, 7-Eleven is actually one of the favored places among locals to grab some local kine grinds. You'll find everything from manapua to hot dogs to Hawaiian baked goods, poi, kalua pig, taquitos, and even lau lau. 7-Eleven's tend to take on the food varieties of their location, so it's a good place to taste Hawaiian flavors for cheap.

Local grocery stores like Foodland, Malama, and Tamura's will also offer shoppers a variety of inexpensive goodies. One of my all-time favorite grab-and-go type snacks (that is really inexpensive) is edamame, specifically the kind that's been marinated Hawaiian-style. You can also find sushi rolls that are made fresh every day, different types of poke (which you HAVE to try!), a variety of fried foods (like potato wedges, chicken, corn dogs, etc.) fruit salads, olives, and delicious cheeses. We recommend going for the more sustaining stuff, like edamame and rice, which will leave you full for longer than fried stuff or other cheap items can. Also, an increasingly popular dish among locals is the poke bowls, which are an instant filler and very affordable. This is a bowl of white sticky rice topped with fresh poke (fresh ahi tuna) that's marinated in shoyu, onion, garlic, seaweed, and other tasty island flavors.

Farmers markets are another great way to save (that is, if your rental includes a kitchen). Because of the plentiful markets happening around the island, you can usually find one every day of the week. Here you can stock up on fresh fruits and veggies, breads and bakery goodies, meats, and other things for at-home cooking. Or, if you really want to go cheap, you can always check out the farmers markets for their free samples! You can taste different dips, spreads, hummus, coconut popcorn, fruits, spices, chocolate and more, and most farmers markets offer plate lunch options as well. (Did we mention Costco gives out free samples all day long too? Hahaha…)

As far as eating out for dinner, it's possible to do affordably too, and we don't mean taking the kids to McDonalds. Keep in mind that many times the view will indicate the price. For example,