thePULSEEating Out This Weekend on a Tiny Budget
October
2005 – It’s Friday afternoon. The dining hall is serving “Chef’s
Choice” ~ Read: leftovers. Your skin is yellow from endless packages
of ramen. But you only have a few bucks until next payday. How do you
silence your growling stomach on a shoestring budget? Forget the fast
food. Here’s a guide to staying full all weekend long even if your
wallet is emptier than your stomach.
Friday: Dinner
Kick off the weekend with a little Tex-Mex flair at Tortilla Sam’s
(107 Highland St.) A complimentary plate of
flour and corn tortilla chips with fresh red salsa (all homemade) gives
you something to munch on while you mull over the extensive menu. Burritos,
enchiladas, quesadillas, chimichangas, and vegetarian dishes are just
some of the choices ranging from $4.95 to $9.95. Can’t decide? Try
a two or three-item Mexican
combo plate. If you’re digging pennies out of the couch cushions,
here’s a hint: The appetizer portions are enormous. Have an appetizer-sized
quesadillawith black beans, steak, veggies, or chicken for $3.95
to $5.95, or split the Huge Nachos ($8.95) with a friend. You will not
go home hungry and chances are that you’ll wind up with man’s
(and woman’s) best friend ~ the doggie bag.
Saturday: Lunch
If you’re adventurous, take advantage of one of Worcester’s
several topnotch Asian restaurants, serving excellent exotic dishes that
won’t drain your bank account. Thai Cha-Da (264-266 Park Ave, Worcester,
www.thaicha-da.com)
offers an array of curries, noodle and rice dishes, and meat-and-vegetable
stir fries with savory herbs, spices, and sauces. A lunch serving of Pad
Thai ~ stir fried rice noodles with chicken, shrimp, bean sprouts, egg,
and ground peanuts ~ will set you back just $5.25 and curries (red, green,
yellow, Panang, and Massaman) with your choice of beef, chicken, tofu,
duck, shrimp, or mixed seafood run from just $4.95 ~ $6.50. These dishes
are hearty, full of protein and delicious ~ and the portions are enormous
(and a note to you lazy leftovers types, they taste great cold, too!).
Equally yummy and easy on the wallet is Vietnamese food. Voted “Best
Southeast Asian Restaurant” in 2005, Da Lat (425 Park Ave.) is a
time-honored favorite among college students for its wide array of soups,
rice and noodle dishes, and fresh, tasty meats and seafood. Bun (rice
vermicelli bowls sauteed with lemongrass, a sweet and sour sauce, crushed
peanuts, and your choice of protein) is a popular and filling meal, starting
at $4.70. With so many choices, you can’t go wrong or run out of
money ~ the most expensive item on the menu by far is $8.60!
If your tastebuds aren’t world-travelers, don’t worry. Check
out the Boston sports memorabilia at New England Roast Beef (33 Park Ave.)
while grabbing an overflowing sandwich. Try the roast beef or the State
(chicken salad and bacon) on French bread with beer-battered fries. Most
sandwiches are under $6 and massive. And for a true slice of Worcester,
head downtown to George’s Coney Island Lunch (158 Southbridge Street)
for the hot dogs and ambiance that have made the place a Wormtown institution.
A couple of bucks will get you a dog, fixin’s, and a drink.
Saturday: Dinner
To start a great night, stop by the Boynton on Highland St. The pizza,
with its crispy crust and flavorsome mix of cheeses, is a local favorite
and a total steal at $3.75 for a small plain version. If you like to share,
upgrade to a large and split it with a friend. While you enjoy a slice,
check out the sporting event of the evening on the bar’s flatscreen
TVs.
Eat dinner on your own schedule at the Boulevard Diner (155 Shrewsbury
St.) “The Bully” serves breakfast around the clock. But you
can also opt for stick-to-your-ribs food like meatloaf, the renowned chicken
soup, and various Italian entrees. Lots of these items hover around the
$3.00 – $5.00 range, too. Have your
meal before your Saturday night shenanigans, or refuel afterward ~ the
Boulevard is open 24 hours.
Sunday: Brunch
Put away the Cheerios and slide into a diner booth. A favorite among the
college crowd is Annie’s Clark Brunch (934 Main Street), known for
hearty, homemade selections and a comfortable atmosphere, described by
one fan as “the Cheers of the breakfast set.” Try the omelets,
pancakes, and French toast, allunder $7. And Annie’s a sweetheart.There’s
an art to eating cheaply.Get a feel for which restaurantsserve big portions,
or those thatserve complimentary appetizers,popcorn or bread with theirmeals.
Remember that pasta andrice dishes are really fillingand inexpensive,
so chances arethat you’ll be bringing homesome leftovers and what
youpaid for one meal will actuallywind up covering two. Never beshy about
taking home what you can’t finish. Leftovers are a godsend (and
one investment worth making is a $3 Gladware container so that you can
keep them fresh in the fridge longer).
Almost all places offer free soda refills, too. It may sound silly, but
if you order chowder, pop the oyster crackers into your purse or pocket
and save ‘em for a snack. Some restaurants offer two for one entrees,
so grab a friend and split the cost. A word to the wise, though –
always save a little to tip your server well ~ not only is it the right
thing to do, but if you take care of your server, chances are they’ll
take good care of you if you become a regular. Lots of area bars serve
10 cent or even free wings during the week – not a bad way to eat
for free if you’re planning to have a beer anyway! There’s
no shame in taking a place up on its offer to feed you for free!
And one last hint ~ even though “grocery shopping” is an
evil phrase for many of us, it does pay to get one of those Shaw’s
or Price Chopper cards. There are tons of great 2 for 1 sales every week
at the market but you need a card to get the savings ~ which are one of
the best ways to stock up on food for your room or apartment (and it’s
much easier than the old fashioned coupon-clipping!)
Now you’re armed with some money-saving ideas and a few suggestions
on places to try. So no more accruing Frequent Feeder miles at the local
Micky D’s, OK? Get out there and eat some real food ~
cheap!
In addition to information about area restaurants, transportation, shopping
and entertainment, the site has fun Worcester facts, an advanced social
calendar, short features and even student podcasts (blogs downloadable
in mp3 format).
“Our strategy [for this site] was to try to counteract some of
the negative stereotypes that students have about Worcester,” said
Holy Cross Director of Admissions Ann McDermott. Holy Cross’s site,
launched in July of this year, is the brainchild of Frank Vellaccio, senior
vice president for the College of the Holy Cross. Vellaccio, who oversees
admissions policies, felt that a site like this was necessary to help
prospective students, especially from outside the region, learn more about
the city.
As Ellen Ryder, Director of Public Affairs at the college, mentioned
in an interview, students looking for a college are not simply selecting
a school; they’re deciding on a place to live. She sees the site
as an opportunity for Holy Cross to illustrate Worcester on a deeper level.
“We’re not trying to sell [Worcester] as something it’s
not,” Ryder said, “but honestly [the site staff] all grew
up here, and we really enjoy living in Worcester. We want to get that
information out to an external audience.”
The Word on Worceste ris likely the first of many similar sites from
other area schools, as all will be involved in an initiative called The
Worcester UniverCity Partnership. This alliance amongst the city, the
consortium of Worcester colleges and the local business community was
commissioned by Mayor Timothy to examine best practices from cities across
the country and to propose ways that the City of Worcester could utilize
local colleges for economic development and community revitalization.
Armand Carriere, founding Executive Director for The Worcester UniverCity
Partnership, agrees that college admissions web sites are a great way
to combat negative ideas.
“If Worcester has an ‘image problem’, it may be that,
in spite of the numerous colleges in the area, it is not perceived as
a college town. One of the initiatives the UniverCity Partnership will
be undertaking will be to address this image problem,” said Carriere
via e-mail.
“Holy Cross’s The Word on Worcester[site] is a good example
of presenting Worcester in a positive light, highlighting the cultural
and recreational features of the area,” said Carriere. “We’re
encouraging the other colleges to develop similar strategies.” Steven
Hickey, Holy Cross Class of 2008, and member of the Student Government
Association, thinks that this site has a lot of potential for current
as well as prospective students.
“The city of Worcester is underappreciated,” Hickey said.
“Even people who have been [here] for a while aren’t aware
of all that Worcester has to offer. The site goes a long way to helping
provide links to things in Worcester that students can enjoy.”
Looking forward, The College of the Holy Cross plans to expand on the
site as they gather input from current and prospective students. The college
plans to survey incoming students to discover their reasons for attending,
as well as to talk to those students who defer admission, to find out
how location played into their decision. Be sure to check out The Word
on Worcester for yourself at www.holycross.edu/departments/adm-fa-bur/admissions/Worcester/index.html
