Cheap Eats For Busy Bees

Woo Boy! Have I been busy lately! So busy, that when it comes time to eat I don’t have time to grocery shop or cook. So, you know what that means…I end up eating out A LOT. Not something that’s usually great for the budget but luckily I managed to find some places that offer great food at even better prices.

1) In-N-Out Burger – I might as well get this one over with first cus I’m totally preaching to the choir, right? In-N-Out is one of SoCal’s most beloved institutions. But I have to mention it because I’m always so darned amazed at how cheap it is. Fries and a cheeseburger for 4 bucks! How do you beat that? And it tastes so good!

Hey! Where’s the cheese?

2) Wahoo’s Fish Taco – Sometimes I wonder what’s the best institution to come out of SoCal. I think it’s a toss up between In-N-Out and Wahoo’s with Wahoo’s coming out slightly ahead. The best fish tacos – white flaky fish, a heap of cabbage, a lil cheese and a lil salsa. Mmm, mmm, mmm. Then add some delicious white rice (how do they make it taste so good???) and some spicy cajun white beans and I’ve got one of my favorite meals. It’s officially called the #1 combo and it’s available for less than 5 smackers. And it’s so much food. So much delicious, delicious food.

This is the #2 combo, just minus one of the tacos and you get the picture

3) Cafe Chiarini – This one’s a new discovery for me. I read about it in the local paper and decided to give it a try. Located in the most random area in downtown Santa Ana (seriously…it’s behind a government building on the corner of a residential street next to a school ground) this place has some seriously good eats with a nice selection of sandwiches, salads, and soups (plus breakfast). I opted for the Roasted Turkey Sandwich with a side of fresh fruit. Roasted turkey, garden fresh arugula and tomatoes, cheddar cheese, basil aioli on fresh baked sourdough bread. Doesn’t it sound so good? And it is! And it’s huge!!!! I could only eat half of my sandwich. At $7.99 it’s a good deal to boot.

4) Porto’s Bakery – Oh Porto’s how I loved thee and thy delicious, delicious Cubano sandwich. Since I already wrote about ya a year ago I’ll just send the readers to this link. Read my ravings past, they haven’t changed.