Cheap eats in Baytown

Eating well in Baytown for about ten to twelve dollars a person or less is easy if you skip the chains on the freeway and eat where the town eats. The cheapest good meals here are pupusas on Garth Road, a burger stand that has been on Decker Drive since 1955, tacos downtown, hand-pulled noodles in a Garth strip center and fried shrimp on West Main. This guide lists the places that stay at the lowest price level, what to order at each, and when they're closed, so the cheap plan doesn't end at a locked door.

Garth Road, north to south

Garth is where most of the cheap eating is, spread between strip centers.

Pupuseria El Rey. 5622 Garth Road. Salvadoran pupusas with curtido, plus Honduran baleadas and tajadas in the same room, which is a reminder that Baytown's table is as Central American as it is Tex-Mex. Order the revuelta and the loroco pupusas, more than you think you need, and ask for extra curtido. It opens at 8 every day but Saturday, when it's closed, so don't make it the Saturday lunch plan.

El Toro. 5810 Garth Road. A family-run Tex-Mex dining room since 1960, with tortillas made in house and a green sauce. Weekday hours start at 11, and the breakfast plates are a Saturday and Sunday thing, when it opens at 9.

Noodle Master. 4539 Garth Road, suite 210A. Hand-pulled noodles, soup dumplings and a beef noodle soup that is a full meal in one bowl. It's open 11 to 9 every day. The suite sits behind bigger signs in the same strip, so look for 210A.

888 Chinese Restaurant. 4567 Garth Road, suite 400. The old reliable Chinese dining room on Garth, with combination plates and hot tea. The lunch specials are where the value is. It opens at 10:30 every day.

Colonial House of Sandwiches. 3002 Garth Road. A lunch counter since 1981: hot roast beef that needs a fork, a turkey club and a pink lemonade. It is a lunch place, closing at 6 Monday to Thursday, 3 on Friday and 2:30 on Saturday, and closed on Sunday.

Downtown and Market Street

Bocanegra's Kitchen. 214 West Texas Avenue. Birria and queso tacos on a flour tortilla, from a downtown kitchen with a point of view. The restaurant describes $1.50 brisket and barbacoa tacos on Taco Tuesday, ramen as a Wednesday special and Hot Cheetos quesadillas. It's open 9 to 8 Monday to Saturday and closed Sunday. Art Alley is two doors down, which makes it a cheap afternoon as well as a cheap meal.

El Sinaloense. 3002 Market Street. Sinaloa-style seafood, which means aguachile and tacos gobernador instead of a combination platter. It opens at 10:30 Monday to Saturday and 11 on Sunday, and closes at 7:30.

Baytown Seafood. 715 West Main Street. Fried shrimp and catfish baskets with hushpuppies, without the waterfront markup, and a market counter for taking it home. It's open every day, until 8:30 on Sunday.

Decker Drive and North Alexander

Someburger. 1002 Decker Drive. A burger stand on Decker since 1955, with quarter-pound burgers, hand-cut fries and malts. Order the cheeseburger or the double. It's open 9 to 8 Monday to Saturday and 11 to 7 on Sunday.

Mi Parrillada. 2109 North Alexander Drive. A neighborhood grill with carne asada plates, nachos and breakfast plates from 7 in the morning. It stays open to 10 most nights and to 11:30 on Friday and Saturday, one of the few local kitchens still plating that late.

D&D Burritos. 105 North Alexander Drive. A burrito counter that opens at 5 a.m. Monday to Saturday and 6 on Sunday, which matters in a town that starts its shifts early.

On Highway 146 and the freeway

Dumpling Time. 8804 North Highway 146, suite 100. Dough made fresh daily, steamed and pan-fried dumplings, pork bao and dan dan noodles. It's open from 10:45 every day. Order more buns than the table agreed to.

Taqueria Emmanuel. 7630 Highway 146. A taqueria that opens at 5 a.m. on weekdays and 7 on weekends, for the breakfast taco before the gate.

Laredo Taco Company. 4061 East Freeway. Open 24 hours, which makes it the cheap meal at 2 a.m. after a shift.

Shawarma In Town. 407 West Baker Road, unit V. A chicken shawarma wrap with extra garlic sauce and pickled turnips, from a halal counter in a Baker Road strip. It's open into the evening, but not late at night.

Lunch specials are where Baytown's sit-down rooms get cheapest, and the same plate costs more at dinner.

How cheap is cheap here

Prices change faster than any page, so this guide doesn't print menu prices beyond what a place states about itself. The lowest price level here means a counter or casual meal, typically under about ten to twelve dollars a person before a drink. Lunch specials are where Baytown's sit-down rooms get cheapest, and the same plate costs more at dinner. For more, the lunch guide covers the weekday hour, the taco and Tex-Mex guide goes deeper on tortillas, and the 4 a.m. breakfast guide is for the earliest shift.

Before you go

- Check the day before you drive, because Pupuseria El Rey is closed Saturday and Colonial House and Bocanegra's Kitchen are closed Sunday. - Go at lunch for the specials, since several sit-down rooms charge less at midday than at dinner. - Bring a card and some cash, because small counters sometimes have a card minimum. - Order at the counter and take it to go if you are watching the bill, since a tip and a drink can add a third to a cheap plate.

En español

Comer barato en Baytown

Comer bien en Baytown por unos diez a doce dólares por persona, o menos, es fácil si te saltas las cadenas de la autopista y comes donde come el pueblo. Lo más barato y bueno: pupusas en Garth Road, una hamburguesería en Decker Drive desde 1955, tacos en el centro, fideos estirados a mano en un centro comercial de Garth y camarones fritos en West Main. Esta guía dice qué pedir en cada lugar y cuándo está cerrado, para que el plan barato no termine frente a una puerta con candado.

En Garth Road, de norte a sur

- Pupuseria El Rey, 5622 Garth Road: pupusas salvadoreñas con curtido, y en el mismo local baleadas y tajadas hondureñas. Pide la revuelta y las de loroco, más de las que crees necesitar, y pide más curtido. Abre a las 8 todos los días menos el sábado, que cierra. - El Toro, 5810 Garth Road: comedor familiar de Tex-Mex desde 1960, con tortillas hechas en casa y salsa verde. Entre semana abre a las 11; los desayunos son cosa de sábado y domingo, desde las 9. - Noodle Master, 4539 Garth Road, suite 210A: fideos estirados a mano, dumplings de sopa y una sopa de fideos con res que es una comida completa. Abre de 11 a 9 todos los días; busca el 210A porque está detrás de letreros más grandes. - 888 Chinese Restaurant, 4567 Garth Road, suite 400: el comedor chino de siempre en Garth, con platos combinados y té caliente. Lo mejor son los especiales de almuerzo. Abre a las 10:30 todos los días. - Colonial House of Sandwiches, 3002 Garth Road: mostrador de almuerzo desde 1981, con rosbif caliente, sándwich club de pavo y limonada rosada. Cierra a las 6 de lunes a jueves, a las 3 el viernes y a las 2:30 el sábado, y no abre el domingo.

El centro y Market Street

- Bocanegra's Kitchen, 214 West Texas Avenue: tacos de birria y de queso en tortilla de harina. El restaurante anuncia tacos de brisket y barbacoa a $1.50 los martes, ramen especial los miércoles y quesadillas de Hot Cheetos. Abre de 9 a 8 de lunes a sábado y cierra el domingo. Art Alley está a dos puertas, así que sale una tarde barata además de una comida barata. - El Sinaloense, 3002 Market Street: mariscos al estilo Sinaloa, es decir, aguachile y tacos gobernador. Abre a las 10:30 de lunes a sábado y a las 11 el domingo; cierra a las 7:30. - Baytown Seafood, 715 West Main Street: canastas de camarón y bagre fritos con hushpuppies, sin el sobreprecio de la orilla del agua, y un mostrador para llevar. Abre todos los días, hasta las 8:30 el domingo.

Decker Drive y North Alexander

- Someburger, 1002 Decker Drive: hamburguesería en Decker desde 1955, con hamburguesas de un cuarto de libra, papas cortadas a mano y malteadas. Pide la cheeseburger o la doble. Abre de 9 a 8 de lunes a sábado y de 11 a 7 el domingo. - Mi Parrillada, 2109 North Alexander Drive: parrilla de barrio con carne asada, nachos y desayunos desde las 7 de la mañana. Casi todas las noches cierra a las 10, y el viernes y el sábado a las 11:30. - D&D Burritos, 105 North Alexander Drive: mostrador de burritos que abre a las 5 de la mañana de lunes a sábado y a las 6 el domingo, útil en un pueblo que empieza los turnos temprano.

Highway 146 y la autopista

- Dumpling Time, 8804 North Highway 146, suite 100: masa hecha cada día, dumplings al vapor y fritos, bao de cerdo y fideos dan dan. Abre desde las 10:45 todos los días. Pide más bollos de los que acordó la mesa. - Taqueria Emmanuel, 7630 Highway 146: abre a las 5 de la mañana entre semana y a las 7 los fines de semana, para el taco de desayuno antes de entrar al turno. - Laredo Taco Company, 4061 East Freeway: abre las 24 horas, la comida barata de las 2 de la madrugada al salir del turno. - Shawarma In Town, 407 West Baker Road, unidad V: wrap de shawarma de pollo con salsa de ajo extra y nabos encurtidos, en un mostrador halal. Abre hasta la noche, pero no de madrugada.

Qué tan barato es

Los precios cambian más rápido que cualquier página, así que esta guía no imprime precios de menú, salvo lo que un lugar dice de sí mismo. El nivel de precio más bajo significa una comida de mostrador o informal, normalmente de diez a doce dólares por persona antes de la bebida. Los especiales de almuerzo son donde los comedores de Baytown salen más baratos, y el mismo plato cuesta más en la cena. Para seguir, mira la guía de almuerzo, la guía de tacos y Tex-Mex y la guía de desayuno de las 4 a.m..

Antes de ir

- Revisa el día antes de manejar: Pupuseria El Rey cierra el sábado, y Colonial House y Bocanegra's Kitchen cierran el domingo. - Ve a la hora del almuerzo por los especiales, porque varios comedores cobran menos al mediodía que en la cena. - Lleva tarjeta y algo de efectivo, porque a veces los mostradores pequeños piden un mínimo con tarjeta. - Pide en el mostrador y llévatelo si cuidas la cuenta, porque la propina y una bebida pueden sumar un tercio a un plato barato.