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If you have a decent stocked pantry (spices, grains, pasta, canned goods, etc), it's not much more expensive if you shop right. As long as you have an idea of what you want to cook for the week, you can get away with spending about as much on good food as you would if you ate junk all the time. I'll buy whole chickens or a couple pounds of meat that I can make a number of meals from and it's not pricey when you average it out. Whole chickens are a lot more tasty too - it just takes a tiny bit more effort to prepare.
I think one of the main issues people have is that they won't spend $80 at one time for food even though it'll last for at least a week - they'd rather buy an individual lunch or dinner and then do that every day. Or they go to the store and buy a bunch of junk food that they can't even make a meal out of, which adds up quick. So now they have snacks and such, but can't make a decent dinner without the notion that it's going to cost them a fortune.
Another big thing that makes people think it costs much more, is that they waste a ton of food. If you buy a bunch of perishable items at the beginning of the week, it's not going to last and you'll throw half your food away and go back to the store and start the cycle over. I know a few people that will buy a ton of fruit, deli meat, cheese, etc, and only end up eating a fraction of it since it goes bad fairly quick.
Although, if you shop at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's type stores for all your food, this whole post goes out the window since those places are much more expensive.
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