I joined Local Guides for one reason: FOOD! But please, do not misunderstand me. Please, do not get offended either. I am not a foodie and I am definitely not a very knowledgeable person in the food department. I am a student on a budget, that loves a good deal and to eat good food. So here I am going to share my top three favorite places to eat for people on a budget in Columbus, OH, where I am currently studying.
I have to be honest; unlike some of my more picky friends, I am very relaxed respect to food. I like food from almost everywhere (as long as it is not too spicy, because otherwise, ouch my tongue!) and I worry more often about the price, about the place being accessible (like being near a bus station or having a parking lot) and about the portion size. Why does the portion size matter to me? Because, if I go to eat outside my home, I like to bring some food back home for the next day’s lunch or dinner (without spending extra of course).
So let’s dive into it!
- Tai’s Bistro
I love this place. It advertises food from around Asia, so it claims to offer Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Thai food. Some of my Asian friends hate it, some love it, all of them tell me that this food is more American than Asian. I am no one to judge, for me this place is – hands down – the best value for your money. The portions are big…BIG…HUGE! So I can easily eat just half of my plate, be completely full and still have a lot of food to take back home for the next day’s lunch. The prices are very good, most of the plates are under $10, and with tip and taxes I usually end up paying ~$12 for a dish that lasts me two meals (Not bad, huh?). While this place is not walking distance from Ohio State University, if you use a bike, it is very easy to get here.
The taste of the food, for me, is great. You can ask them for “mild” spicy food or not spicy at all, which is very useful for me (and also for kids who are not very good with spicy food). They offer refillable drinks and offer free lemon slices that you can put in your water to feel fancier.
If you have a car, you will take around 5 minutes from the university to get here. Plus, the place has a big parking lot so that you will find a parking spot easily.
- Applebee’s
Oh Applebee’s. In my hometown (Quito-Ecuador) we used to have one Applebee’s. It did not succeed, so it went away after just a few years. Back at home, this place was known for being overpriced, so we could only go there on special occasions (e.g. birthdays, anniversaries). When I arrived in Columbus, and found out that there was one Applebee’s five minutes away from my house, I said, great, one place where I will not be able to go.
So I spent months coming back from the university without paying attention to this place because of my preconceptions of it! One day some friends suggested to go there after 9 pm because of the ”specials”, and then my life changed (ok no, but almost).
Applebee’s offers regular American food: burgers, wings, ribs, some side salads and a wide variety of drinks. Their prices are around $12-$15 per dish usually. But what I really like about this place, is their Appetizers specials. So, if you go from 3pm-6pm Monday to Friday, or after 9 pm everyday, all the Appetizers are half price! That means, you can eat 10 bone-in wings for $5.50! That is such a great deal. My friends and I like to order always extra wings, so that we can take home whatever is left after our feast. Furthermore, they usually have drink specials like “Dollarita”, where you can get a good (dilluted) cocktail for $1. For someone who does not really drink alcohol like me, this is awesome. In summary, for ~$8 including tip I get to eat wings, a drink, take wings home and be happy. I love this.
Additionally, since Applebee’s is a franchise, it always offers a good sized parking lot for your car. Sadly, right now all Applebee’s are a bit difficult to get to by using public transportation (the one restaurant that was close to my apartment closed a year ago), but if you are with friends, you can probably just take an Uber and divide the cost. It is worth it
- Los Guachos
Probably if you are a latino in Columbus, you know about this place. Even if you are not, you may have heard of it. Los Guachos is a typical Mexican restaurant, that according to my Mexican-American roommate, is the closest to the authentic food that you can find in Mexico. I love that I can order food in Spanish here, and that the food is full of flavor! The fresh cilantro on top of my ‘gringas’ is heavenly. The prices here range from $3 - $10 per dish, but usually, you have to order more than one to be full. For example, a taco can cost $3, but you have to order three of them to be full.
What I love about this place, apart from the fact that the food is delicious, is that they have specials! On Mondays, you can get ‘tacos al pastor’ for $1.50 each, and on Wednesdays, you can get ‘gringas’ at half price: $2 instead of $4. ‘Gringas’, which include melted mozzarella cheese, are considered an Americanized version of tacos, and they taste so good! They are my favorite in this place. Usually, I go with my friends on Wednesdays, and we order two gringas to eat and three to take out, that way our lunch for the next day is covered!
The parking lot for this place has a good size, and if you are coming by bus, just take line 1 from Ohio State University and in half an hour you will be there! It is really convenient.
Runner-ups
So that is my summary of my favorite places to eat on a budget in Columbus, OH. I would like to mention some other places that I really like, but did not include in the list because they are more expensive than I am used to, or I can only have one meal with them.
- Texas RoadHouse: offers different cuts of meat, and unlimited free peanuts and bread, and unlimited juice while you are waiting to be seated. Expect to pay around $16 plus tip and taxes for a meal.
- AAB India Restaurant: this place offers an Indian-American style buffet everyday from 12pm-3pm. It is very good and the place is elegant and cozy. The buffet costs around $12 plus tip and taxes.
- Blaze pizza: they offer, as they say in their website, Fast-Fire’d custom built artisanal pizzas. So, for around $8 you get a medium sized pizza made from scratch (you can actually see how they make the dough in front of you) that you can customize according to your preferences. It is great on PI day (3/14) since you can order a pizza and pay only $3.14!
- Adriatico’s pizza: it is an emblematic place around Ohio State University. Whenever there is an event at the university that offers free pizza, it will likely be Adriatico’s. Its variety of crusts and flavors definitely make of this pizza a great choice when you are craving fast food.
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Hound dogs pizza: this place offers some of the best pizza I have ever tried. Just order the chicken BBQ or All the meats pizza and you will see. However, it becomes a bit expensive (you can easily pay $10 per person for one or two slices), so that is why I put it here. Sorry, I did not put any picture, I think every time I eat this pizza I am too excited to take a photo!
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Bibibop: this is a Korean-American restaurant (please Korean friends, do not get angry). Here you get a bowl and a mix of protein, rice or noodles, and a variety of vegetables plus their specialty sauces for around $7. Plus you get to eat as much Miso soup as you like. It tastes good for me!
*** Bonus: Galapagos restaurant ***
This restaurant is not cheap, but they have pretty decent-tasting food from my home country Ecuador. If you have heard from Ecuador or you are just curious about how our food is, I really recommend going here. You will not be disappointed (just make sure you order extra ‘aji’ for your food, it is a soft hardly-spicy sauce on the side).
If you are still there, thank you for reading this far! You are welcome to share this small post with any lil’ Buckeye or person that lives in/visits Columbus.