Frugal Floozie Friday - Bell's Diner

Bell's Diner, today's Frugal Floozie Friday feature, is a place which - as it states on its menu - invites you to "Call it your home." Very friendly, it's a great place to go for breakfast, lunch, or just to find "good, homemade food in a casual and cheerful atmosphere." It's an Ann Arbor institution.

Many, many options qualify for our mandatory $5 per person budget, and it's really hard to choose among them! But since Craig and I were there in the early afternoon, I was feeling more inclined towards lunch than towards breakfast.

Thus, I ordered the Deluxe Cheeseburger, which offered a choice of American, Cheddar, Swiss, or Jack cheese and was served with either fries or onion rings. Most places charge extra for an option other than the potatoes, but this full plate of food fell perfectly within our limit at $4.99.

Craig ordered breakfast, as he's a traditional kinda guy when it comes to food and this was his first meal of the day. While his generously-filled plate snuck just above our limit to $5.29, you can order this entire meal without the hash browns - thus, "2 eggs with bacon, sausage, or ham and toast" - for a mere $4.59. It was so much food that Craig even shared some of the bacon to supplement my cheeseburger!

Some other choices include homemade sausage gravy with a biscuit for $3.59; two large pancakes with one egg for $4.29; or a three-egg cheese omelette served with toast for $4.59.

Regular sandwiches (served with potato chips, pickles, and cole slaw) that meet our budgetary limit include the grilled cheese, the egg salad, the BLT, the hot dog, and the Coney Island. Deluxe sandwiches (served with lettuce, fries or onion rings, cole slaw, and pickles) that qualify are the grilled cheese, the egg salad, and the hot dog.

All of the regular burgers (same terms as the sandwiches, above) are great frugal options; or you can order a deluxe hamburger or cheeseburger.

One of the many great aspects of Bell's is that it serves both diner food and also Korean classics. So you can even enjoy a six-piece plate of Mandoo - "seasoned vegetables wrapped in pasta and deep fried" - with sweet and sour sauce for only $3.99.

If you just want dessert and a cup of coffee, Bell's offers fresh pie for $2.49, or enjoy it a la mode for $3.49. A hot fudge sundae also costs $3.49.

Stop by Bell's for a warm welcome, a cozy atmosphere, and great food for very inexpensive prices!


Bell's Diner
2167 W. Stadium Blvd.
Ann Arbor, MI 48103
734-995-0226
Monday: 6:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Tuesday - Saturday: 6:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Sunday: 8 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.



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Frugal Floozie Friday - Roy's Squeeze Inn

 

I had driven by Roy's Squeeze Inn so many times, but never managed to stop in. That's too bad, because it offers wonderfully friendly service, good food, and amazing prices. Thus, it is today's Frugal Floozie Friday feature!

Virtually every item - with the exception of a few of the burgers and the family-sized side orders - qualifies for our mandatory budget of $5 per person. So you could share the generous larger servings of fries, if you want to; but you can also get a meal for yourself within the price range.

I ordered the BBQ Pork Sandwich, pictured above, for $3.70. It was the size of a large burger, and - I was very pleased to find out - came topped with the cole slaw so that it wasn't necessary to place an extra order to put this together myself. I also wanted to see how generous the side dishes were, and found that the curly fries were a perfect single serving at $2.15. If you're just in the mood for a salty snack, they're ideal.

Craig chose the Quarter Cheese Squeeze burger that cost $3.70, and paired it with onion rings that also made for a nice-sized single serving, if you were to order them alone, for $2.20.

Roy's is quaint and old-fashioned with a semi-circular counter and cute tchotchkes; but Craig and I were the only ones who chose to eat in the restaurant on the evening that we visited. I was impressed to see at least a half-dozen customers come in for take-out orders, and found the service to be tremendously friendly as well as efficient.

Vegetarians will have to make do with the side dishes, from potato wedges to fried mushrooms, as well as the options listed above. Carnivores, however, will be able to eat very well for very little money. "Sandwiches," as the menu calls them, range from hot dogs to ham sandwiches (with or without cheese) and also a chicken sandwich; prices range from $1.30 to only $4.

And then there are the burgers, from Little Squeeze sliders costing a mere $1.15 each to the half-pound Big Squeeze for $4.95. You can also add toppings - extra cheese, crispy bacon, jalapeno peppers, grilled mushrooms, cole slaw, or chili - for as little as 40 cents and as much as $1.50.

So sort through the various permutations and eat very well at Roy's for less than $5!

Roy's Squeeze Inn
1315 E. Michigan Ave.
Ypsilanti, MI 48198
734-485-3999
Monday - Saturday: 10 a.m.- 10 p.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m. - 9 p.m.



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