Is there still an honest $5 lunch out there?

I can get  a pint of Pork Fried Rice and Orange soda for $3.50++
bkk

Nice Dmag list Plb! I have one to add. A Keller's burger and some tator tots. I love a #5 w/ chili but that combo may be a bit more?
Joe

Hey, there are some great suggestion given out here for a $5 meal. The one given by Foodosaurus seems a great choice with two slices of cheese and one fountain soda. Would like to try that out sometime. On getting the food talk going, I would say that NinjaGreens Organic Supplements would be a great choice.

Also in MKE -

George Webb's, a local diner chain, offers several meals under or at $5, not including tip.

There are a couple grocery deli counters that have ready-made food that's really good - soup, sandwiches, chicken, salads, even fish: Glorioso's, Groppi's, Sendik's, Sentry, El Rey, etc.

Martino's or Sammy's or Dog Haus for a dog

I'd rather go to Cousin's than Subway any day, and Cousins has the $5 special, too.

Then again, there's Suburbia Submarine Sandwich - very tasty, and worth the extra buck.

Hello, BigCanuck:
 
Do you still live in Palatine and work in Vernon Hills? 
 
If you define lunch as entree + side + drink (example: hamburger, french fries, Coke), then the answer is basically "No, you can't get non-chain food for that price in Vernon Hills".
 
If you replace the drink with water, then here are a couple ideas that some people might count as a real lunch:
 
Portillo’s
            Jumbo Chili Cheese Dog                       $3.15
            Large Fries                                           $1.85
 
El Famous Burrito
            Ground Beef Burrito (it's huge)           $3.66
            Chicken Taco                                       $1.31
 
Bobo’s Gyros
            Quarter Pound CharBurger                   $3.38
            Two Chocolate Chunk Cookies              $1.00
 
Pizza Italia
            Meatball Sandwich with Red Sauce        $4.95
 
Now, considering that your first name appears to be "Big", I'm wondering if that also describes the size of your appetite, too?  LOL LOL If so, then the meals above may seem too scrawny to count as lunch.  No diss intended in teasing you about a big appetite, as I myself recently went (secretly, and alone, in shame) to Old Country Buffet and stuffed myself gluttonously!!!  For dinner, not lunch, and yes, it cost more than $5.00 !!!
 

Burger King, at least for now:
 
2 Buck Doubles ($1 each, they claim 1/4 pound each before cooking)
1 Side Salad ($1)
1 small drink ($1)
Total: $4 + tax.
 
Bart

Brown Bag it! Definitely under $5.00!!! And great food too! Happy Eating! KokomoJoe

We contract a in house Cafeteria and sell $5 lunches everyday.
Today..open face Hot beef sandwich with mashed potatoes and gravy hot veg ......... $5
Tuesday.. Super Nachos or Taco salad in a Fried Tortilla shell $4.75
Wed.. Chicken Cacciatore over spaghetti with garlic bread... $5
Thurs...Open face Roast Tom turkey sandwich homemade gravy Mashed potatoes and hot veg ...$5.... Monday is a different shift than thursday.
Friday......Seafood platter beer battered fish filet, clam strips, fried shrimp with fries.........$5.50

Billy,
Would you still be able to do that if you had a stand-alone restaurant that you rented or owned?

David_NYC


Billy,
Would you still be able to do that if you had a stand-alone restaurant that you rented or owned?

NYC, I would love to say yes, but the answer is no. I have very little over head, so more drops down to the bottom line. The company we contract with gives us a full Kitchen, no rent, no electric, no water & sewer,no repair cost or maintenance on equipment. I am able to keep the prices down low, not really because the company asks me too, but because i feel they should be low, so the employees can afford to eat there........I am starting a new sandwich menu, I want to offer quality at a low price but its getting harder and harder to do. Cheesesteaks, Reubens, turkey clubs for around $4.75 .......................The same sandwich in town would be between $7and $8 ................... The account we service now, I offer them a Chef run operation, with specials like Blackened Chicken Alfredo linguini, Crispy chicken Caesar salad, Homemade Buttermilk Chicken strips with fries and slaw, homemade Lasagna, Beef stroganoff over egg noodles, Hot beef and Turkey sands with homemade gravy, potatoes, hot veg, Homemade soups and chowders, all kind of Mexican entrees, Sweet and sour chicken, spaghetti and meatballs garlic toast, open grill with all kinds of hot sandwiches, burgers, hot box pick up and go menu, plus we offer a full breakfast menu with fresh made omelets, eggs to order, bacon, sausage, chicken fried steak, country gravy, french toast, pancakes, butter milk biscuits, hashbrowns, breakfast sandwiches, breakfast burritos...... Breakfast specials are $4.25.......................BillyB

As we say here "good food ain't cheap, cheap food ain't good", I don't believe a restaurant could survive selling GOOD, Filling portions of a rounded lunch for 5 bucks!

The Solution---------Pack Your Lunch!

In Northampton, Massachusetts ...
Five-Dollar Lunch: Week One
Five Dollar Lunch: Week Two
Five-Dollar Lunch: Week Three
Five-Dollar Lunch: Week Four
These are NOT all places I eat, The reviewer was a little to kind to everyplace he wrote about.  As always, if you are considering eating in this neck of the woods: 
http://www.wheregreggeats.com/northampton.htm

In Pittsburgh, I'd go to Zaw's Asian Food in Squirrel Hill. My usual order is the Curry Chicken lunch special, which leaves me full and happy for $3.75.

The Old Fart's rate ( "Senior Luncheon") at RYAN's (Buffet) is $4.95. Beverage puts it over $5, so drink water  !!
I do it about once a week.

In Roanoke, Va. Texas Tavern.
http://xrl.in/6ejk
http://www.texastavern-inc.com/
 
DT

The Ikea dogs are not bad.
One of these days I'm gonna bring my own chili to work. Grab some dogs to go and add my chili.
 
DT

plb


D (like in Dallas) Magazine just ran an article:
"8 Great Dallas Meals for Under $5"

http://www.dmagazine.com/Home/2009/06/25/8_Great_Dallas_Meals_for_Under_5.aspx

 
Second that plb. I love our delicious and cheap taquerias in Dallas!

I think every town or city or whatever has a $5.00 menu in one way or another. Around here its the local deli who makes a huge grinder that needs a hydrolic press before you try an take a bite out of it. Three people have a hard time eatin it for $9.50. Illiano's pizza who serves up a stuffed pizza for $3.50 a slice and is an awsome sight to behold! If you can finish it and go back to work without wantin to find a couch somewhere, your doin good! Ya gotta roll yer sleeves up an tie napkins just above yer elbows to catch all the grease. Dont know if its the lb of meat in it or the grease that fills ya up but its pretty damn good!
 
Then we go to Manhattan all the time an get a couple of the NYC dogs with mustard an kraut for $5.00. Or we can hit the street markets in the city and get a nice stuffed gyro for $3.50.
 
Most all chinese food places have lunches for under $5.00...
 
Pretty much anywhere will have a great lunch for $5.00 if ya look hard enough!

Funny - I just got back from having lunch in Vernon Hills! I work in Lake Forest.
 
Where did I have lunch (and I spent just over $5)? Jamba Juice. Which I realize for many people doesn't count as a lunch. But I've always enjoyed their smoothies, and find them quite satisfying, especially the protein workout, which doesn't have any yogurt. It's more like a soy protein drink, so I feel Ok having it for lunch.
 
But for a sitdown lunch, it's hard to find anything at $5. Here at work, we have a cafeteria, and sometimes I'll have a veggie burger, a bag of chips or pretzels and a cup of water, with fruit for dessert, and it comes in near $5. But I doubt anyone on Roadfood would think of that as great eating.

When I think back 25 years, in high school, we used to walk over to the local Jewel Foods (we had an open campus), and I'd buy a roast beef sandwich on a fresh poppyseed roll for $1.90. With a can of generic soda for 18 cents, the whole lunch came in under $2.50.
 
There was also a Leon's BBQ down the street (this is back when Leon's had a North Side of Chicago location). For around $4, you could have five fried chicken wings with BBQ sauce and fries, along with a piece of white bread. Now that was a great lunch!

It may be a little far for you to go for lunch but not far from my town (Elkhart, In) I can get a great lunch for under $5.  On $1 taco Tuesday I go to Carneciera San Jose, an independent mexican restaurant.  I get three great tacos grilled fish is my favorite followed closely by pork or shredded beef.  They also have some more exotic meats but I haven't worked up the courage to try tongue or brain.  With 3 tacos, complimentary chips & salsa, a glass of ice water I am out of there for $4.25 including tax & tip.  The rest of the week the price on the tacos raise to a shocking $1.79 each.  I would bet that with a little bit of looking you could find a similar place in your area.

Stella's here in Madison has a couple of good $5 sandwiches on the standard lunch menu and some others for $5.50 and $6.  They're all decent size and on baked-in-house bread, and come with a pickle spear and a cookie.  I stopped in last Friday and the daily special was a $5 empanada; I bought a spicy cheese one and found it quite good.
 
Brad