Food, Fun and Fashion for the Have-Nots
Bozeman’s Best Bargains: Uncovered Secrets
By Alison Grey, 11-13-07
We may love the lifestyle here in Bozeman, but rarely does that lifestyle translate into high salaries. For the budget-minded among us, it can be a daunting task to entertain, feed and clothe ourselves in a town of haves and have-nots, surrounded by the expensive gear stores, stylish diners and posh bars that dominate the downtown scene.
Still, there are some pretty good deals on food, fashion and fun around town, and you don’t even have to resort to the corporate evils of North 19th. Here are a few of the places (mind you, I’m judging on daily drink and food specials and overall low prices, not necessarily health) that offer the some of the best dirt-cheap options around. And please, if I’m missing any must-know deals around town, let me know!
Fill up that Belly
Spectators: This bar takes the cake for consistent food and drink specials, making it affordable every day of the week (as long as you can brave the college sports crew). Here are a few highlights: Tuesdays are Big Ass Burger night, where you can get a burger and any draft beer for $6.95. Thursdays are pizza night, which includes a large pizza and a pitcher for $19.95. And Fridays, you can get a dozen wings and a pitcher for $11.50.
The Western: This longtime Bozeman staple is a no-nonsense diner that hasn’t changed with the times, with hands-down the cheapest basic breakfasts around. For less than $6 you can have a plate filled with hashbrowns, bacon, eggs and toast. Just remember, they’re closed on Sundays.
The City Center Steak House (formerly known as the Black Angus): Head here for their killer lunch special, Mondays through Fridays, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., any burger, French fries and drink costs a whopping $5 (that’s cheaper than McDonalds!). And that’s not all. You can pick any specialty burger on the menu with all the toppings; mushrooms and bacon, pepper jack cheese, Cajun, you name it.
Colombo’s: Tuesdays are the night to head to this local pizza joint, when you can order a large or jumbo pizza and get half price on a pitcher of any beer on tap!
Pour House: This sports bar has daily food specials, but here are some of the highlights: Wednesdays are Whiskey and Wing Night, with $2 single and $4 double whiskey drinks and 40-cent wings. Head in on Sundays, and get a bacon burger and fries (I’m telling you the sour cream fries and homemade ranch are killer) for only $5.95.
Feeling a little classy? Head to Looie’s Down Under: On Sundays, they have an all-you-can-eat brunch for $11.95 (with tiramisu!) that allows you to completely gorge yourself. And, on Thursday evenings the place offers diners 25 percent off their sushi check; still a little pricey, but a pretty sweet discount.
Time to Get Your Drink On
Montana Ale Works: The food might be a little pricey, but they have a daily happy hour, from 4 to 6 p.m., with all their specialty brews from Blackfoot Brewing Company at a measly $2.50 a pint.
Spectator’s: On Sundays, cure your hangover and watch the game with a Bloody Mary for $3 or head in on Mondays for $1.75 pints.
Cat’s Paw: Again, on Sundays enjoy $3 pitchers, a plethora of televisions and cheap food. Enough said.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown: The drinks here are dirt-cheap every day, but on Sundays (yep, apparently Sundays are a busy drinking day; make your choices wisely), every beer on tap is only $1.25 for a pint and $3.75 for a pitcher.
Pour House: Thursdays are especially appealing for the party-hardy crew, with a dangerously cheap Long Island Iced-Tea, at $3.
The Garage: If it decides to keep snowing, you can head to the Garage after a day on the slopes with your lift ticket in hand, and score a free can of beer or $1.50 off any pint.
Dress-Up and Gear-Up that Beautiful Booty
Sacks: You find clothes, décor and everything else in-between at this thrift store. And, you can feel good, cause your hard-earned dollars will be supporting a good cause: The Help Center. But, head here on the first Friday of the month for the best bargain around, when everything in the store is half-price! Also, every week look for colorful dots indicating sale items. This week green is half price and yellow is 75 percent off!
Cat Walk: Talk about an awesome second hand clothing store, with great fashion finds for guys and girls, teenagers and young professionals that run the gamut of funky, fun or classic.
Second Wind Sports: Why buy this year’s $300 North Face jacket when you can find a lightly-worn, high quality version of the same brand at this second hand outdoor gear and clothing shop for fractions of the original cost? With all your favorite name brand goods, this shop has everything from jackets, snow pants and fleeces to sleds, skis and hockey skates.
PhD Skis: While shopping for new gear on-line might be the cheapest route, it’s always good to support your local ski shops, and the service is always better from Phd’s Ski Doctor. Right now is a great time to get the final blow-out sales from last year’s models (while they last!), with 50 percent off every ski, ranging between $250 and $500. And, if you’re looking at this year’s models, PhD is the cheapest around and all their prices include bindings.
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Bozeman and gallatin are two of the most elitist, racist cities in the USA
They fight hard to keep out homeless shelters and to deny opportunity to minorities, homeless, etc
i would like to see bozeman increase its minority poulation.
I do ahve to credit some of the younger bozeman females who are open to accepting African Americans as boyfriends and ignore the nazi like remarks that come from some bozeman white teens.
It is now a whiteland that has displaced the native Americans and
has prospered off the sweat of the poor.
Town and Country Warehouse Market Deli Section - 8" sub, your choice of roast beef, ham, turkey, American or Swiss cheese and lettuce on a roll $1. Chilled can of pop for 34 cents.
Or, Heaven Forbid, you could always COOK at home. On restaurant food, the farm value of the food is 16 cents on every dollar spent. You are supporting the low wage jobs of your local Bozeman service sector economy. It's not about feeding yourself. Its about entertainment. On grocery store food, 22-25 cents of every dollar goes to the farm value of the food, a similar portion to processing, 9 cents for packaging, and the rest for marketing, retailing, and transportation. Your food bills must be outrageous if you spend $5 to $7 a meal. Consider these options:
A box of macaroni and cheese (2/88 cents at Warehouse) prepared and add a can of chili ($1.00) - enough for 2 people for under $1 each.
Bake a potato in the microwave (3-4 minutes per side) . Stab it first (all over) so it doesn't blow up. It's done when you squeeze it and it gives a little. Top with butter, sour cream, shredded cheese with cooked broccoli or ham, or top with chili. Still under $2.
You can get burritos on sale (box of 8 for $2) or 39cents each.
Nuke them in the micro and add chopped tomato, onion, lettuce mix.
If you already have the lettuce mix, tomato and onion, and the ham and cheese from above, how long does it take to put together a chef's salad?
And remember eggs are the cheapest source of protein, next to beans and peanut butter. Eggs - fried, scrambled, hard boiled, egg salad, eggs in fried rice, eggs with tortillas and salsa. GET CREATIVE. TAKE CHARGE of your own life.