Frugal Floozie Friday -- Pacific Beach Burritos

Jeremy accompanied me to an appointment recently, so I returned the favor by taking him out to eat as a way to say "thanks."

Fortunately, he doesn't expect to be treated to the most lavish meals in town; he wants quick, simple food and generous quantities of it - 20 year old males are good about that. And he's thoroughly enjoying our Frugal Floozie Friday mission of maximizing $5 expenditures, to see how much proverbial bang we can get for our bucks.

So I was happy to have Jeremy join me for my latest frugal adventure to Pacific Beach Burritos for an excellent, freshly made, wholesome lunch. That the meal we enjoyed was 562 steps beyond being fast food, despite the speed with which we were served, only made it better.

For $3.99, Jeremy received an entire plate of food with no need to order any accompaniments or side dishes. His three rolled chicken tacos were a generously-stuffed, crispy feast served with shredded lettuce; drizzles of sour cream and a dollop of guacamole completed the dish.

He knew he'd have to play my little game of staring at his food while I positioned and re-positioned it for its moment in the spotlight, photographing the tacos for posterity ... the curse of sharing a meal with someone who writes about food. But it was abundantly clear that this was making him impatient - the man was hungry. And the food looked and smelled amazing! Jeremy was very grateful when I told him he could finally eat, and he thoroughly enjoyed his lunch.

I ordered two different tacos for a light but immensely flavorful - and surprisingly filling - lunch. One was the Carne Asada taco, featuring marinated and seasoned beef. The other was the Al Pastor, filled with pork that had been marinated and then cooked on a rotisserie. Each came with a bright and tart green salsa, and the tacos also featured crisp onions and fresh cilantro to complement the meats.

At $1.49 each, these were a tremendous value! Had I been hungrier (or simply indulged in gluttony by ordering more because everything was so good), I could have eaten a third taco and still stayed within my Frugal Floozie Friday budget of $5 or less per person.

Jeremy and I arrived at Pacific Beach Burritos around 12:30 p.m., just barely in time to beat the lunch rush. As we sat down, we watched the ordering line start to grow; within moments, truly, we counted 21 people waiting to enjoy a fabulous meal. It was better to be eating while watching this scene; but the food was so good that it really would have been worth waiting in such a line for a quick and excellent lunch.

Amazing what you can get for a mere $5 or less, isn't it?

Pacific Beach Burritos
2835 Washtenaw
Ypsilanti, Michigan 48197
(734) 434-9900


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