The idea of a “struggling college student” is no myth. It’s tough out here you guys. But when it comes to food, you don’t have to break the bank for a filling meal. Let me introduce five restaurants in Gainesville that you can get a meal for under $10.
Big Lou’s Pizzeria
Like most college students, I loooooove pizza, and Big Lou’s is one of Gainesville’s finest. Nestled in the heart of downtown Gainesville, passersby will always see a multitude of people eating outside. You can smell the deliciously cheesy pizza and tantalizing buttery garlic rolls from a mile away. But the best part? I can stroll up and order two (huge!) slices of pizza AND a soda for just $7.60. What can beat that?
Blaze Pizza
A whole pizza for under $10? It’s more likely than you think. As the Subway for pizza, a Blaze build-your-own costs $8.25 with as many toppings as your heart desires, and I promise that you’ll have leftovers. There are even boxes available at different spots in the restaurant for exactly that purpose. With 24 toppings, 10 sauces and seven types of cheese, it is inevitable that you’ll find a combination that you love.
La Tienda
Pizza is great, but a staple in the college student’s diet is tacos. Gainesville has a million great places for tacos, but I argue that La Tienda has the very best for its prices. Here, you can order three tacos for $5.80 ($7-$8 for any kind of seafood tacos). With 13 options of meat AND the option to mix and match, you can’t go wrong here. I always go for the steak and chorizo combo.
Maple Street Biscuit Company
It’s almost noon on a Sunday and you’re cracking your eyes open for the first time that “morning” and a voice inside your head whispers to you, completely unprovoked. You know what sounds good right now, that voice suggests. Brunch.
But you’re a struggling college student, and you don’t want to break the bank (brunch in Gainesville is almost always overpriced). Hopefully, the next thing that voice will whisper is Maple Street Biscuit Company. Their most popular breakfast, “The Five,” consists of a flaky biscuit, fried chicken, smoked bacon and cheddar cheese, and the whole mess is topped with delicious gravy – all for $8!
Mi Apá
Mi Apá quickly became a staple in my diet when I moved to Gainesville. Their menu is huge and has a million different options for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The most expensive meal you can get here is their “Ropa Vieja” for $8.39, and the portions are huge. Since they offer breakfast all day, and breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, I always order the “Arroz a la Cubana,” which comes out to $5.69.