Theressa Velazquez
Audio By Carbonatix
Finding the best food at the best prices feels like a never-ending treasure hunt. Prices keep rising, while our favorite restaurants keep closing. But if you keep searching long enough, you’ll find far more X’s that mark the spots for dinner in Dallas, where prices are slashed, and quality isn’t compromised.
We’ve compiled some of our favorite daily specials, where you can eat out on the cheap every night of the week. If you’re looking for a list of happy hour specials, we’ve got that too.
Monday
4315 Bryan St., East Dallas
Bryan Street Tavern, your neighborhood watering hole known for its made-from-scratch stone-fired pizzas and craft beers, offers half-price pizzas all day on Mondays (dine-in only), plus $5 Crown and down from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Choose from 9-inch to 19-inch with custom combinations or build your own options.
The Crafty Irishman
1800 Main St., Downtown
Treat yourself to a fish and chips entrée at The Crafty Irishman on Mondays, and get a second for free. You must also buy two beers to take advantage of this offer.
Pie Tap Pizza Workshop + Bar
Various Locations
Mondays are meant for margaritas-Margherita pizza, that is. All Pie Tap locations offer buy one, get one half off all day Monday. The pizza is $17 regularly, so the second one saves you $8.50. Parlay this with happy hour on Mondays (through Friday) from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., featuring $7 cocktails, $6 wines, $5 beer and $7 bar bites. What are we waiting for?
Stan’s Blue Note
2908 Greenville Ave., Lower Greenville
On Mondays at Stan’s Blue Note on Greenville Avenue, spaghetti and meatballs are $8.99; and hot dogs and tacos are $1.99 from 4 to 11 p.m. Head over for an early dinner and get $1.99 Busch Light drafts and $4 wells from 4 to 7 p.m.
State & Allen Kitchen + Bar
2400 Allen St. (Uptown)
Known for its eclectic American casual cuisine, State & Allen Kitchen + Bar offers half-priced pizzas on Monday nights. Choose from one of their specialty pizzas, like meaty meat or pesto chicken, or you can build your own.
Velvet Taco
Various Locations
Velvet Taco created the Backdoor Chicken, a quick meal that doesn’t compromise on quality or flavor. The chicken is brined and marinated in-house for 48 hours, then roasted over an open flame. On Mondays, for $20, get one whole rotisserie chicken, six tortillas, three sides and two hot sauces. That’s a humdinger of a deal.
Tuesday
Libertine
2101 Greenville Ave. (Lower Greenville)
Tuesday is steak night at Libertine. For $20, you can get a steak or burger with a cocktail (an Absolut martini, a TX Old Fashioned or an Altos Paloma).
HALCYON
2900 Greenville Ave. (Lower Greenville)
On Tuesdays from 6 to 10 p.m., Halcyon offers “girl dinner,” a Caesar salad, French fries and an espresso martini combo all for just $20. Plus, a limited selection of “little bonus luxuries” that include a $3 bruschetta and $5 caprese, perfect for a cheaper night out. Lately, the restaurant has been pairing the special with a TV series to binge in increments throughout the month. In January, Pretty Little Liars was screened on Halcyon’s in-house projector. This month, you can catch up on Season 1 of Sex In The City.
Taqueria Taxco
All Locations
Celebrate Taco Tuesday at Taqueria Taxco with $1.99 tacos (usually $3.00)! Choose from meat options like trompo, carnitas, chicken and barbacoa.
Twisted Root Burger Co.
Deep Ellum, Carrollton, Plano
Burgers will always be Twisted Root’s specialty, but you can’t go wrong with a plate of their lightly fried chicken tenders and fries, which only runs $10 on Tuesdays. The deal includes a drink, which means three menu items for less than the price of a single burger. That’s one hell of a deal.
Cenzo’s Pizza & Deli
1700 W. Tenth St. (Oak Cliff)
If you’re craving a classic pepperoni or cheese pizza, check out Cenzo’s on Tuesdays for $14 Brighton (mozzarella, parmesan, basil) or Rosemont (cup and char pepperoni) pizzas. That’s a $4.50 to $7.50 savings. You can also get half-off on wine. Dine-in only.
Wednesday
Easy Slider
3905 Eastside Ave.
We love a happy hour that slides into dinner time. Easy Slider is also our new crush. Go see why on Wednesdays from 4 to 7 p.m., when you can get a Big Smash burger for $8.
Mayer’s Garden
2422 N. Henderson
You can get one of the best deals in town on Wednesday nights at Mayer’s Garden, where a small traditional plate of bolognese costs just $6. Pair it with a $6 happy hour margarita or $8 house cocktail, and you’ve got the makings of a great night out.
Rodeo Goat
All Locations
Check out Worthy Wednesdays at Rodeo Goat and snack on some cheese fries for half the price, regularly $13.99. It’s the perfect addition to any of their over-the-top burgers, which are enough to share.
El Vecino
718 N. Buckner Blvd. (Casa Linda)
El Vecino, an upscale and lively spot, offers an enchilada special on Wednesdays. For just $7.99, get two enchiladas with rice and beans. Your choice of cheese, beef or chicken. Dine-in only.
Thursday
Olivella’s Pizza & Wine
Dallas Locations
If you’re craving pasta, head to Olivella’s Pizza and Wine on Thursdays for a BOGO half-off pasta special.
RJ’s Mexican Cuisine
1701 N Market St. #102
RJ’s Mexican Cuisine in West End offers a great deal every night of the week, including a build-your-own Mexican bowl on Wednesdays or a fajita plate on Fridays. Our favorite is sandwiched in the middle, where a chimichanga dinner costs $8.99 on Thursdays. It comes with a choice between chicken or beef, covered in queso, with a serving of rice and black beans.
Friday
Perry’s Steakhouse
Uptown, Frisco and Grapevine
A Friday lunch at Perry’s is epic. The famous pork chop with whipped potatoes, homemade apple sauce and an individual loaf of bread is $22. This special, for both dine-in and take-out, is available from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Culpepper Cattle Company
3309 Elm St, Dallas (Deep Ellum)
Every Friday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Culpepper celebrates Fajita Fridays. For $10, you can get steak or chicken fajitas served with rice, beans and “all the fixin’s.”
The Weekend
Malai Kitchen
Uptown, Preston Center, Southlake and Fort Worth
Malai Kitchen has happy hour food bites during the week from 3 to 6 p.m., and the same deal all day on Sundays (excluding holidays). You can enjoy $7 bites of grilled satay, fried imperial rolls, spicy edamame, Vietnamese meatballs or cucumber salad. Get any two for $12.
Sushi Axiom
3211 Oak Lawn Ave. (Oak Lawn)
Nothing says “Sunday Funday” better than an all-day sushi happy hour at Sushi Axiom. Choose from several appetizers such as crispy calamari and three-piece beef satay for $8. Original sushi rolls (California, spicy tuna, spicy salmon) are offered for $7. Sushi varieties like yellowtail, tuna and escolar go for $6 and signature rolls for $10.
Buddhist Temple of Dallas
8484 Stults Road
There’s nothing like a Sunday afternoon at the Buddhist Temple’s bustling food market, where beef and pork skewers cost as little as $1, sticky rice is just $2, and you can get a Thai coffee on your way out for $5. Pound for pound, the food and prices at the Sunday market might be the best Dallas has to offer. Come prepared, most vendors are still cash-only, but a quick trip to the ATM will be worth an afternoon of culinary enlightenment.
Everyday
Bistro B
Lake Highlands and Grand Prairie
If anything matches the sensory overload of Bistro B’s interior – colored lights, fake blossoming cherry trees and blinking neon signs – it’s a spread from the menu’s hundreds of items. On weekend nights after you’ve left the nightclub, venture there with your late-night crew for an array of Vietnamese delights, including pho, com tam breakfast platters and crepes. Anytime, day or night, enjoy the “buy two, get one free” banh mi or pho dishes.
Cris and John
5555 Preston Oaks Road (North Dallas)
Cris and John’s weekly $30 specials offer enough food to feed an army. When you place your order online, you can see what special is being offered that particular week. An example of one weekly offering is your choice of a phorrito (all of the ingredients in a typical bowl of pho, but wrapped into a burrito tortilla), a bao bun, dumplings, skewers and tacos.
