Last week, I wrote part one in my four part series on my interview with Amy Graff, Best Western's family travel expert who recently took a two and a half week family road trip on $150 per day.  This week, I'm going to focus on how Amy's family saved money on food while they drove the length of the Mississippi River.

Instead of eating at fast food restaurants and chains, Amy's family wanted to eat at local establishments.  They used the websites Roadfood.com and Chowhound.com to find the highest rated and reasonably priced locations, as well as the iPhone application Urban Spoon.  At the restaurants, they only ordered water as their beverage (iced, of course), and often split entrees, since portions at these restaurants are often large.  If they found themselves still hungry, they'd order additional food.

On the road, they each had a Kleen Kanteen that they filled with water at hotels and restrooms, so they wouldn't have to purchase drinks.  In addition, they often visited local grocery stores to purchase snacks.  On occasion, rather than stopping at a restaurant, they'd eat lunch from their snack stash.

Next week, I'll focus on how Amy's family saved money on their hotel stays.