My financial conscience was feeling a bit of guilt this week after dining out at Fiorello’s, Uminoie, La Nacional, and the espresso bar at The Met Opera, eating ice cream at Cones in West Village, and drinking fancy cocktails at Little Branch. Even worse, I took a look at my credit card statement for the past month and saw that most of my expenses came from dining out and drinking. New York is an expensive place to eat and drink.

This may sound like a phony endorsement, but bear with me. My friend told me about the Citi Professional Cash Card, which gives you 3% cash back on all your spending at restaurants and bars, which is 2% better than what my current card gives me. I signed up for it today and hopefully it’ll be on its way in a few weeks. I’m very excited about saving some additional money on my restaurant spending, but in the end, 3% is, well, just 3%. Spending $1,000 on dining out, which is about the amount I spend every 5-7 weeks, will net me $30 in dividends, enough for a cheap bottle of wine at a restaurant or brunch for two at a local cafe. In other words, saving an extra 2% is just a small part of what should be a larger effort in spending less on dining out. Anyone know of any new BYOB spots?