YOU SHOULD ONLY BE HAPPY ....

food & grocery: Frugal Friday at Gourmet Garden - portions are large enough to feed two

By Mary Bilyeu AnnArbor.com Community Contributor
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Posted on Fri, Oct 12, 2012 : 8 a.m.

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Mary Bilyeu | Contributor

We've been so, so busy lately that Jeremy and I once again found ourselves out running errands and schlepping to appointments one evening, and determined that we needed to get some dinner. Not having had Chinese food in a long time, we stopped by Gourmet Garden, today's Frugal Floozie Friday feature.

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Mary Bilyeu, Contributor

For a mere $5.95, I ordered a platter of Lo Mein with bright, crisp vegetables. It was easily enough to feed two or more people, which then allows — within our $5 per person budget — for a fresh, hot, crunchy spring roll for $1.25. Since our meal had started with a complementary dish of fried chow mein noodles with a sweet dipping sauce, there was an ample quantity of food.

Jeremy veered from some of his usual dishes, and ordered the Sweet and Sour Pork for $8.50; he'd simply heard it calling to him, so he thought he'd try it. The coating wasn't soggy at all, having apparently been freshly sauced before serving; and the sauce itself wasn't too sweet, and was quite good. Served with rice, this is another dish that could serve two.

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Mary Bilyeu, Contributor

The restaurant's dinner dishes are meant to be served family-style and to be shared; and the portions are large enough to serve possibly three or four with appetizers. Most of the menu offerings are so reasonably priced — under $10, and often under $8 — that splitting them is a great frugal way to enjoy a good meal.

At lunchtime, you can order the Luncheon Special and get either Buddhist Delight or Broccoli in Garlic Sauce for less than $5 each; and these are served with both soup and with your choice of white, brown or fried rice.

Gourmet Garden is a great place to go for good food, fast service, and generous portions.

Gourmet Garden 2255 W. Stadium Blvd. Ann Arbor, MI 48103 734-668-8389

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Mary Bilyeu writes for AnnArbor.com on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, telling about her adventures in the kitchen - making dinner, celebrating holidays, entering cooking contests, meeting new friends ... whatever strikes her fancy. She is also on a mission to find great deals for her Frugal Floozie Friday posts, seeking fabulous food at restaurants on the limited budget of only $5 per person. Feel free to email her with questions, comments, or suggestions: yentamary@gmail.com.

Go visit Mary's blog — Food Floozie — where she enthuses and effuses over all things food-related; and look for her monthly articles in the Washtenaw Jewish News. "Like" her on Facebook, or send a tweet on Twitter, too.

The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured in this post) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15 and is a wish for all her readers - when you come to visit here, may you always be happy.

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