Thanks so much for all of your ideas and suggestions!

MauiKai and Suzanne_3FC, you have succeeded in making the popcorn look A LOT less tempting in the future for me, oh my. My husband and I pretty much stopped eating out about a month ago when we went to one of our "regular" places and a friend found a fly in her chimichanga- deep fried right smack in the center of the burrito, ugh. The maggot story is worse though, wow.

I know it's not a big deal if you don't go to the movies very often, but it seems like all of these special little occasions add up over the year and I'm trying to be more thoughtful about the options. I aim to be a bit Buddhist about it and find the "middle way", so to speak.

I definitely eat dinner before going, but I had never thought about sneaking it in, love it! And the wine is brilliant, Munchy. I don't mind a little mindless snacking on occasion, but I'm going to try some different things in the future that you all suggested- bring snacks, no snacks, just a water, maybe a sandwich. That's fantastic.

My local cinema serves wine So I have a glass of something, and I knit. Much better for me than the giant box of Malteasers I used to eat, and I can get quite a lot of sock knitted during a movie.

I am currently attempting to knit Austrian twisted stitch cable socks, which I have ripped back about 20 times. I shudder to think what I'd find after emerging into the light if I attempted to knit any of that sock in a dark movie theatre.

Ugh. I hope somebody reported him to the health board.

I've never snuck in meals, but I'll sneak in bottles of water because there's no water fountain in the theatre and the price at the concession stand is ursury.

Couch, you must be an accomplished knitter to be able to do it in a dark theater. I don't knit, but I can only imagine the bizarre creations that would be made after 2 hours in the dark.

Creativian, I hear you about the prices of drinks and snacks. I snuck water in last weekend because how can you justify spending so much on a bottle??? It's highway robbery.

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Not really a fan of movie snacks, so diet or no diet, I skip it.

Over the past several years I gradually shifted from larger sizes of popcorn to the small size, and then I finally decided that the movie theater popcorn smelled a lot better than it tasted and learned to resist the tempting aroma and skip it altogether.

I've smuggled in my own beverages and snacks for quite a while now - bottled water, or sometimes a water bottle with ice and water, or a can of diet soda. Snacks run the gamut from cheese and crackers to nuts to candy. Lately I've taken to trying out the packaged store-bought popcorn - white cheddar, kettlecorn, etc. It might not be the ideal light/healthy snack, but at least I have the nutrition information for exactly what I ate. I have to carry a sizable tote bag for that, but no one ever questions me. If the theater served decent quality popcorn - fresh, with real butter - I might consider buying it, but nope - it tends to be dry, overly salty, and what really needs to be said about that fake butter?

Large popcorn, no faux butter, diet soda or water, mainly water. The popcorn then becomes my dinner. I totally love movie popcorn and rather than being a mindless experience, it's a very long lasting and sensuous eating experience, each kernel being slightly different in texture and salty in flavor. I savor it. I'm a lifelong multi-tasker so I notice each bite.

Movie theater snacks don't exist in my world. I can do without eating for a couple of hours, especially mindless eating. Water is fine, but there's no way I'm paying $15 for popcorn and soda on any planet.

This. Theaters are kinda gross anyway. Snacks haven't been part of the moviegoing experience for me since I was a little kid. Also, the term "snacks" is misleading. A popcorn (not sure what size) has more calories & saturated fat than a Big Mac. I used to make that stuff when I was in high school working my summer job. It tastes so good b/c we put sooooooo much oil & sodium in it. Whether you add butter or not, your calories are blown & it is most definitely a splurge.

Bring your own air popped popcorn in a purse or opt for the small.

I never thought about it, but I guess I'm grateful I grew up in a frugal family. We never bought food at the movies, so it's not something that's ingrained in me. Thankfully, I don't have to fight that particular habit!

When I'd go with my ex, he liked to get soda and popcorn, so we'd share that. When I go with anyone else, I either don't get anything or sneak something in. It's even a ritual with my siblings to stop at a grocery store first to get something more real and tasty (and cheaper!) to bring in.

I don't snack at the movies....... good job, great decision making.

We never bought movie snacks when I was growing up because of the price. It was already expensive to go to the movies period, and I was actually resentful that I could always smell the popcorn but was never allowed to get any. We did sneak in our own soda and candy, but that was the extent of it.

When I was old enough to go to the theater on my own and order popcorn, I most certainly did. Not that I had any idea how many calories those buckets contained back then!

More recently I just sneak my own treats in, although we occasionally order a small popcorn to share. In the past I've sneaked in anything from candy bars to McDonald's to Subway to my own air-popped popcorn, but lately we try to eat dinner immediately before so we're not looking for munchies after we get seated.