Arby's 5 for $5

You can feed the entire family or buy yourself enough food for a few meals.



Right now Arby's has five regular roast beef sandwiches for $5. This is a really good deal!

Freebie Wednesday's Finale

For most Wednesdays this summer, people haven't had to ask me "What's for lunch?". They knew I'd be going to Arby's to get something for free. Well, today is the last Freebie Wednesday. You can get a Beef N Cheddar sandwich for free with the purchase of a soft drink.

So goodbye, Freebie Wednesday. We will miss you. Although, you can sign up online and have Arby's send you freebies and promotions in your email. To do that click here.

Olive Garden Update: New Sauce Choices

I have tried both the Creamy Parmesan Florentine and the Roasted Portobello Pomodoro. I must say I Really like the Creamy Parmesan Florentine. The spinach blends in nicely with the cheesy sauce. It's so good it has to be hazardous to your health. The Roasted Portobello Pomodoro was good, but not spectacular. The portobello mushrooms are the highlight and there were only a couple in the bowl.

Never Ending Pasta Bowls Are Back!

It doesn't quite get me as excited as basketball season, but this is high on the list. Olive Garden's Never Ending Pasta Bowl has returned!


This is a great chance to sample sauces or pastas that you'd thought about trying, but just couldn't pull the trigger on. According to Olive Garden, there is a total of 42 pasta and sauce combination you can explore. The available pastas are Spaghetti, Whole Wheat Linguine, Linguine, Fettuccine, Penne, Angel Hair, and Orecchiette (probably my favorite). The sauce choices are Creamy Parmesan Florentine, Roasted Portobello Pomodoro (can't wait to try it), Alfredo, Meat Sauce, Five Cheese Marinara (very, very good), and Marinara. This is all you can eat, and at $8.95 it costs less than anything on Olive Garden's dinner menu including some of the appetizers!

This is a deal that I will be taking advantage of numerous times! For more information on the Never Ending Pasta Bowl deal click here.

Arby's Freebie Wednesday

Today you can get Free Fruitea with the purchase of any sandwich. Yes, the one word "fruitea" spelling is how they do it. I have not tried these as I am not a fan of flavored tea, and I really haven't heard anyone talk about them. If you have tried it, or choose to today, please let me know what you think.

Pasta House Freebie

A coworker tells me you can get Free Toasted Ravioli through the end of August at Pasta House. The restaurant is celebrating its 1st Anniversary at its new location at Jordan's Crossing behind Kentucky Oaks Mall. As always, if I hear about something free, I'll share it with you.

1st Anniversary

Taco John's Taco Tuesdays

I don't like monkeys, but who didn't like "Whiplash the cowboy monkey"? Anywho, one cheap option you can always count on for Tuesday is Taco Tuesday at Taco John's. You can get a crispy taco for 69 cents or a soft shell for 89 cents. Get as many as you want, all day, every Tuesday.

A Freebie At Domino's

Domino's has introduced a new dessert item: Chocolate Lava Crunch Cake. It is oven-baked chocolate cake, crunch on the outside, with warm chocolate fudge on the inside. An order of 2 Chocolate Lava Crunch Cakes is priced at $3.99.

Right now you can get a free Cake when you purchase an order of Domino's BreadBowl Pasta at regular price. That deal is set to last through September 13.

The BreadBowls start at $5.99. There are a number of choices or you can build your own. My wife and I have tried these. We both thought that they were very good, and they are A LOT of food. As many of you might guess these things also pack a ton of calries. If you eat the entire thing, you've consumed between 1,340 and 1,480 calories and around 30 grams of fat in one sitting. (One Chocolate Lava Crunch Cake checks in at 357 calories.)



Here's something very interesting that I found out though, and I did call a Paducah Domino's to confirm that they are participating... If your birthday happens to be in August, you can get a free Chocolate Lava Crunch Cake. Just stop by a Domino's location with proof of your birthday and they'll hook you up. Enjoy!

Parkers Drive In

I have been craving Parkers' food since January. Today I went there for lunch. They just re-opened this week with the grand opening coming soon. I got the Large Hamburger and Fries special with a water. It cost me $3.91. It tasted just as awesome as the food tasted in the old restaurant. As they've said, the new place is much bigger and nicer inside. Check it out when you get a chance.

A Great Reason to Treat Yourself Today

Today is Dairy Queen's fourth annual "Miracle Treat Day". That means at least $1 from every Blizzard sold will be donated to Children's Miracle Network. Children's Miracle Network is a nonprofit organization that raises money for children's hospitals. I'm told that last year’s event at the Paducah Dairy Queen raised more than $2,000 in one day.




C'mon I know it's tough, but I think you can force yourself to be charitable today. I plan on doing my part by getting a Girl Scout Cookie Tag-a-long Blizzard. They are delicious!

Parker's Drive In is Open!

A fire in January scorched the old Lone Oak fixture, but Parkers is rebuilt, bigger, and better than ever. The new building is twice as long and can seat 100 people. The "grand opening" is scheduled for August 19th to 22nd, but you can go get your favorite sandwich or shake right now. Don't forget those fabulous french fries too.

P.S. I've never had their breakfast, but they take reservations to serve large groups. I'm sure they'd put out a pretty nice spread.

One Freebie Spawns Another

You can't go wrong when you go to get something for free and are rewarded with the chance to get something else for free in the future. That happened today when I went to get my free Roast Chicken Club sandwich for Freebie Wednesday at Arby's. (It was Delicious by the way, and I did get the "chicken addiction sauce" on it this time.)



Anywho, I paid for my small drink and collected my sandwich. Then the checkout girl handed me a receipt with the chance to take a phone survey, write a code on the receipt and bring it back for a free Regular Roast Beef or Beef 'n Cheddar. I have taken advantage of this before, and the survey really doesn't take very long.


If you ate the Roast Chicken Club sandwich today, what did you think of it? Let me know in the comments section.

Belews Dairy Bar

A couple of weekends ago, the wife and I took a trip to Land Between the Lakes. A co-worker said "if you go through Aurora, you gotta stop at Belews!" I'd never heard of it, but let's just say the advice was coming from a trusted source.

This person told me several things about the place. He said that the parking lot would be packed regardless of the time of day. He was correct. It was packed as we drove toward LBL and then again when we pulled into the restaurant at probably 8:30pm on a Friday night.

He told me that a car hop would take my order very quickly and then have no problem bringing my order to me regardless of whether I ate in the car or got out and sat at a table. We didn't even have a chance to get our windows rolled completely down and we had a girl asking what we wanted to eat.

He also said that they would grill onions on a burger at no extra charge, and I let them do that also. The burger was Great!

You could get a pretty good amount of food there for about $5. I know that for many of you, if you're in Aurora, you're going to eat fish, but give Belews a try. They have pretty much everything you could want, and you won't be disappointed!

Arby's Freebie Wednesday

The freebies continue through the end of this month. This Wednesday you can get a free Roast Chicken Club sandwich with a purchase of a soft drink. That means you can get a sandwich that usually costs in the $4 range for about $1.60. I've tried one of these before and it was really good. It is good tasting chicken that is thinly sliced like the roast beef. The sandwich also has pepper bacon, swiss cheese, shredded lettuce, sliced tomato and something called “chicken addiction sauce”. I tried mine without the sauce.

Keep in mind that this sandwich packs 520 calories.

17th Street Bar And Grill

If you're in Marion or Murphysboro and want some really good food, regardless of price, 17th Street Bar and Grill is a Really Good choice. The Marion location is literally right down the street from Rent One Park (where the Miners play). They have tons of choices, but the specialty is BBQ of all types.

There are four locations in Southern IL and you can check out the menu here.

We ate at the Marion location on Friday night. We got there at 5:20 and had no problems getting a table for four even with a 7:05 Miners game coming up. It is really new, nice, and very large inside.

A few years back, I went to the original location in Murphysboro on the day of an SIU basketball game. That restaraunt is much smaller and we had to wait quite a long time for a table.

Anywho, I love the food, but it can be a little pricey. Especially when they charge for certain "signature sides".

PS. My wife got the BBQ Chicken. I got the Shoulder. Both were Very Good. Shoulder is one of the cheaper "Entrees", but it was a serious portion. 17th Street's sauce is sweet, without much a kick. I drowned my meat in it, and it was great!

Fazoli's Weekend Deal

Fazoli's says it's looking to help parents who just paid for all of those back-to-school supplies, so why not take advantage. Every Saturday and Sunday in August, you can get a free kid's meal with purchase of an adult entree. The Paducah store is on the list that Fazoli's published on its site.

Here are the choices for the kids:


*Pepperoni Pizza
*Cheese Pizza
*Fettuccine Alfredo
*Meat Lasagna
*Spaghetti with Marinara Sauce, Meat Sauce, or Meatballs


I've taken advantage of this before, and let me share a couple of tips:
1. Avoid the Lasagna!
2. The Pizza isn't bad at all, but I prefer the Cheese over Pepperoni.
3. The Fettuccine Alfredo is really good!

Of course, you can never go wrong with the spaghetti. Enjoy!

Hardee's Biscuit Holes

"A Holes or B Holes?" You've Got to Love commercials with a little controversy and Hardee's loves to deliver them.

I've been getting asked about the Biscuit Holes, so why not give people what they want. I actually tried one last week, and was not impressed. If you like sugary donut holes, you may like them, because to me they tasted like glorified donut holes (I've never been a fan). The "Biscuit" part of the name is totally misleading. They also come with icing which didn't add anything but extra sugar.

They're sold in six packs for $1.69 and they're only available during breakfast hours. The six-piece order has 260 calories plus another 90 for the icing.

Texas Roadhouse Deal

The Texas Roadhouse website reads like this:

"Come in early on Monday through Thursday and enjoy one of these 10 hearty dinners value-priced at only $7.99*.

6 oz. Sirloin Steak
10 oz. Road Kill Chopped Steak
Grilled BBQ Chicken
Country Fried Chicken
Chicken Critters Dinner
Pulled Pork Dinner
Grilled Pork Chop (Single)
Chicken Caesar Salad
Grilled Chicken Salad
Chicken Critter Salad

All dinners (except salads) are served with your choice of two made-from-scratch sides along with bottomless fresh-baked bread and peanuts."

This is a pretty good deal and very good food. I think their steaks are very good, but I'd also recommend the Grilled BBQ Chicken. The thing that will surprise you with how much you'll like it ...... the Grilled Pork Chop. It's not on a Patti's level, but consider the price difference. Try it, you won't be disappointed.

Also, Thank Spiss for sending us a Printable Coupon for a Free Appetizer at the Paducah Texas Roadhouse!


texasroadhouse[1]

Kellogg's Special K Crackers

From the "trying to eat a little healthier" department, I tried the Special K Crackers. These are the ones advertised as 90 calories for 17 crackers. They come in two varieties: Multi-Grain and Italian Tomato & Herb. I tried the Multi-Grain. One site I read says that they come in individually packed .77 oz pouches for portion control, but that was not the case at the Kroger on Paducah's southside.

One thing that to me is confusing is that the front of the box shows the "90 Calories per 17 Crackers" mantra, but the Nutrition Facts say that a serving is 24 crackers and that there are about 7 servings per container. There is also an explainer that says "Why 2 Serving Sizes? We suggest a 90 calorie serving for a satisfying snack to help you stay on track."

I ate the 17 crackers as a side with a sandwich at lunch and really liked them. I mean, it's healthier than chowing down on some greasy chips or fries. So if you are looking for a side or a quick snack to curb your cravings, these crackers seem like a pretty good choice.

BK Burger Shots

I love that commercial!


Anywho, a co-worker offered me a BK Burger Shot today, so I had to try one. I must say it was delicious. You can get six of them for slightly over $4. Two Burger Shots account for 220 calories. Not something you'd eat every day, but worth a try. One site I saw called them "the perfect shareable treat", and that definitely was the case today.

McDonald's Brownie Melt

I have not tried this, but I am really intrigued! A co-worker gave it a rave review, and I heard good things from a relative. I cannot find the price listed online, though.

I guess there are different size servings, because I also searched for calorie counts. The only one I found for it was 680 calories for a medium serving. I'll be trying this at some point and will share an update (but not a bite) then.

Arby's Freebie Wednesday

You can pretty much never go wrong with Free stuff and Arby's has been delivering all summer long. Arby's Freebie Wednesdays continue through the month of August.

This week you get a Free Regular Roast Beef with the purchase of a drink. That means you get a sandwich that usually costs nearly $3 for about $1.50 (including a small drink)!

Tuesday Bargain

Lourdes Hospital's Subway restaurant has some of the best deals around. Everyday of the week, and yes even on the weekends, they have a daily deal of a 6-inch sub for $2.50. Tuesday's just happens to be the Meatball Marinara. I'll list the entire Lourdes Subway deal list at a later time. For now ... Enjoy!

It's Back!

Hungry Hungry Heisner Returns! We're back and better than ever! The blog that helps you find good food at a bargain price returns on a slightly different platform. If you find any food deals, please pass them on to me so we can help save people money!