I wasn’t feeling good lately so I ordered delivery. Here’s how I still stuck to my budget, yet treating us to some Indian takeout. I will share what I have learned about getting the most bang for your buck without seeming stingy.
First, get to know the delivery restaurants around your area. Ask around and talk to anyone that you know orders take out often. Which restaurants are generous and reward you for being a loyal customer? Which restaurants are very stingy with their portions? Which restaurants have a lot of free extras, such as condiments and drinks? See my local recommendations below.
Now, you want to stick to the soups and the appetizers or to the special of the day. They tend to be generous with soups and soup is a very filling food anyway. Eat the soup slowly; savoring the flavors and the fact you did not have to cook that evening. This will fill you up easily. This is a good family meal, just enjoy each other’s company.
Next, you do NOT want to be stingy with your tips. Over time, they will remember you and how well you tip. Make room in your budget specifically for tipping. If you do not have enough to tip, you do not have enough to order, simple as that. You really do get better service when you tip well. The drivers are doing this as their job, not as a courtesy. They will remember you and sometimes they will bring your food to you first, hence, making it faster.
Last night, I decided I wanted Indian. I recommend Gem of India. I ordered the Gem of India bread basket ($7.95), Gem of India platter ($7.95) and the coconut soup ($1.95) totaling $17.95 and I handed the driver $25 and told him to keep the change. I won’t factor in the delivery tip and go with $17.95 divided by 4 people which comes around $4.48 each and I divide that by half to account for the fact we had so much leftover we ate the same things for lunch today. This delivery comes out to $2.24 per serving. The photo is of my own serving, with the condiments we all shared included in the photo to show all the different things that each person got to eat.
I still have all except one of the condiments nearly full and I will be using these in rice, in my grits, in my oatmeal, etc. These are very flavorful and just a little bit goes a long way.
Here are my recommendations for delivery/take out in Springfield, Missouri.
Indian- Gem of India, of course! If you do decide to order an entrée, I feel their portions are generous enough to split two ways or for you to eat for dinner one evening and have leftovers for lunch the next day. If you do this, I recommend stirring all the rice into the sauce so that it doesn’t dry out when you re-heat it in the microwave the next day. The bread basket reheats beautifully. Just wrap each one in a paper towel and zap for 30 seconds. Their chai is amazing! If you happen to eat at the sit-in restaurant, order the chai! Free refills. It is sweet, but has a bite to it.
Chinese- China King. When they get to know you and recognize you as a loyal customer, they give you free boxes of almond cookies and very generous servings. Their lunch for one will easily feed my family of four and fill us with plenty to spare for leftovers. Their crab Rangoon is the best I’ve found in this city and although not budget-wise, I always order two bags- it’s sweet, syrupy and smooth with small bits of krabmeat throughout. Their fried rice reheats beautifully without any sauce because they are not shy about coating each grain in oil.
Thai- ThaiXpress. They don’t deliver, but they have a drive-thru and they are fast! Well, not McDonald’s fast, but you know what I mean. They make your order as you come in, your way. The reason they’re so fast must be because they have an efficient mise-en-place system going in the kitchen. Every time I have a special request, my order is still as fast as the others. Their crab Rangoon is really good too, with large chunks of krabmeat and scallions and fluffy cheese inside. They have very generous servings for a good price.
My favorite sushi restaurant does not deliver, so I won’t review it here.
