Home - Bang for your Burger Buck

Indian, New York City | Dec. 2018

Bang for your Bengali Food Buck: Haat Baazar NYC

Tacos/ Mexican, The South | Dec. 2018

Bang for your Burrito Buck: Red Mesa Mercado

Cheap Eats, The South | Nov. 2018

Bang for your Food Hall Buck: Atlanta Food Halls

Cheap Eats, Midwest | Nov. 2018

Twisted Root Burger Co ~ Dallas TX

Cheap Eats, Midwest | Oct. 2018

Slyman’s Corned Beef ~ Cleveland

New York City, Sandwiches | Oct. 2018

Bang for your Lobster Roll Buck: Bob’s Clam Hut

Bang for your Bengali Food Buck: Haat Baazar NYC

Indian, New York City By blackbookali December 7, 2018 Tags: Bengali, biriyani, Curry, Haat Baazar, Indian, New York City, NYC No Comments

The Vitals:
the spot: Haat Bazaar 3711 73rd st suite 73 Jackson Heights Queens NY
the eats: Biriyani, beef curry, dal, dimmer chop(fried egg), bhaji – basically get everything you can but fair warning: the fish has a million bones!!
the bucks: $10 a person
the full nelson: legendary Bengali grocer serving authentic home cooked Bengali food in the heart of Jackson Heights Queens

Beyond Chicken Tikka Masala and Naan lies a complex world of regional Indian cuisines, like Bengali cuisine of which I grew up on. Not unlike some 1st generation American kids, I longed for hamburgers and pizza over funky fish curries and lentil stews but as I grew older and Mom’s kitchen grew further and further away, I reminisce for the OG stuff I grew up on.

Fair warning: Bengali food is not for everybody. The curries come off oily for the uninitiated, the fish is loaded with bones and can be dangerous to eat if you’re not careful, and yeah, the kabobs are cooked to a temperature beyond well done. Still the spice profile is distinctly different from the all you can eat Indian buffets where cumin and coriander are made almost irrelevant by copious amounts of heavy cream. The bottom line is that there is a lot more to Indian food than your neighborhood Indian restaurant, and if you are looking for a true foodie adventure, head to Haat Bazaar in Jackson Heights, Queens.

Bang for your Burrito Buck: Red Mesa Mercado

Tacos/ Mexican, The South By blackbookali December 2, 2018 Tags: Burritos, Cheap Eats, Cooking Channel, Mexican, Red Mesa Cantina, Red Mesa Mercado, St. Petersburg No Comments

The Vitals:
the spot: Red Mesa Mercado 1100 First Ave N St. Petersburg FL 33705
the eats: Chile Relleno Burrito with Pork Colorado,
the bucks: $7.95
the full nelson: The best Bang for your Burrito Buck outside of Mexico

Considering this is my third post on the food scene in St. Petersburg FL, I think it is safe to say that I am pretty impressed with the food down there. If you saw Cheap Eats St. Petersburg, you might remember the duck confit quesadilla from Red Mesa Cantina. Well Chef Chris Fernandez makes one mean burrito too, in fact this might be one of the best burritos I have ever had . . . and that includes a burrito bender in San Francisco I went on earlier this year. It one was heck of a deal too, legit Bang for your Burrito Buck. Still you should be a little skeptical . . . bona fide burritos in Florida? Well seeing is believing so scroll down to check out Red Mesa Mercado’s contender for some Bang for your Burrito Buck!

More Cheap Eats Birmingham

Cheap Eats, The South By blackbookali November 27, 2018 Tags: Alabama, Birmingham, Carrigan's Pub, Cheap Eats, Cooking Channel, Hot Box, The South 3 Comments

When it came time for Cheap Eats to come down South, Birmingham AL was high on the foodie radar. Forget that Food & Wine magazine moved here(Southern Living is located here as well), Birmingham is home to a James Beard award winning restaurant, a diverse and contemporary food scene and more than a couple places for Cheap Eats. Now if you saw our episode in Birmingham, you already know about one heck of a meatloaf plate and a meaty grilled cheese fit for a Cajun. But in my time in Bham, I found a few more contenders, so let’s take a look at even more Cheap Eats Birmingham!

Cheap Eats Buffalo

Cheap Eats, East Coast By blackbookali November 18, 2018 Tags: Buffalo, Buffalo Wings, Campfire Grill, Cheap Eats, Cooking Channel, Doc Sullivan's, Fairy Cakes, Lloyd Taco Factory, Tacos, wings No Comments

Welcome to Cheap Eats Buffalo, the season finale of Cheap Eats Season 5 and a huge strike off the Cheap Eats bucket list: I ate Buffalo wings IN Buffalo NY! You knew there would be wings but did you expect serious taco and cupcake game? I sure didn’t. Throw in some French Toast that were literally on a roll and you have one fine day of Cheap Eating in Buffalo. Well, enough of the chit chat, time to take one more bite out of Cheap Eats Buffalo!

Bang for your Food Hall Buck: Atlanta Food Halls

The South By blackbookali November 12, 2018 Tags: Atlanta, Food Halls, Krog Street Market, Star Provisions No Comments

Food Halls are the Gastropubs of the 2010s and that food trend is fine by me. While deceptively pricer than the casual food court like seating might imply, Food Halls allow you taste some of the most noteworthy restaurants a city has to offer in a single visit. After taking Cheap Eats to Atlanta, I learned quickly that the ATL has serious dining game and its certainly apparent in these two Atlanta Food Halls. Krog Street Market and Star Provisions are both formidable havens for foodies in their own right, though each have their own distinct feel. Which one comes out on top for Bang for your Food Hall Buck? Scroll down and find out!

Cheap Eats Oklahoma City

Cheap Eats, Midwest By blackbookali November 9, 2018 Tags: Aurora Breakfast Bar and Backyard, Belle Kitchen, Cheap Eats, Gogi Go, Midwest, Oklahoma City, Scottie's Deli 2 Comments

When I look at the line up for Cheap Eats Oklahoma City, larger cities with big food reputations like Chicago come to mind. With a population of just over 600k, you might not expect to find legit macarons in OKC, but low and behold, OKC has LEGIT Macarons. And I wish we had a deli as good as Scottie’s down here in Austin. Well, you know what happens now. I’m gonna stop beating around the bush take you back for one more bite of Cheap Eats Oklahoma City!