I was driving around town the other day and noticed that for a fairly small town, Wichita Falls has a plethora of restaurants.  If you have lived in Wichita Falls for any period of time, I’m sure this is something that you are well aware of. It seems like choosing a place to eat can be one of life’s most challenging decisions.  Preceding that decision is usually a conversation like this:

Man: “Where do you want to go eat?”

Woman: “‘I don’t care, you decide”

Man: “Ok, how about Mexican food”

Woman: “Oh, no, I don’t want that!”

Man: “I thought you said you didn’t care?”

Woman: “I don’t, I just don’t feel like eating Mexican food?”

Man: “Ok, so you do care?”

…Ok, you get the point.

Now restaurants seem to come and go at the drop of a hat around here, so I thought I would put together a list of the top 10 best cheap restaurants in Wichita Falls before they all change hands again.  I am a huge advocate of supporting our local economy through our local businesses, so most of the restaurants in the list are locally owned.

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El Gordo Mexican Restaurant
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At first glance, the decor and ambiance of El Gordo may not leave you with the most appetizing feeling, but fear not; the food looks (and tastes) better than the restaurant does. Here in Wichita Falls we have an overabundance of Tex-Mex restaurants to choose from but with the most expensive item on the menu sitting right around $10, El Gordo Mexican Restaurant is an affordable choice for the entire family.

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Double Daves Pizza Works
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Double Dave’s refers to themselves as “a REAL pizza joint” and I would have to agree.  They say that even bad pizza is still pretty good, I don’t know about that, I have had some pretty gross pizza before. But no worries at Double Dave’s the pizza is better than good, it’s worthy of being called your favorite!

-$7 for the lunch buffet or $8 with a drink.

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Alfredo's_Mexican_Cafe
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Alfredo’s is kept spotlessly clean, and with over sized ornate wooden chairs and comfy booths, the atmosphere is quite cozy.  Complete with nicely dressed and delicious entrées and an endless supply of hot made-from-scratch tortillas, Alfredo’s Mexican Café leaves nothing on the table…and neither will you!

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Gidget's_Sandwich_Shack
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In a nice little cozy spot downtown lies Gidget’s Sandwich Shack.  Great soups, great sandwiches and you can get in and out with a full sandwich, a drink, chips, a pickle and a cookie for under 9 bucks! – and in under 30 minutes too. They make pretty much everything fresh on site and the friendly staff is second to none.  Excellent choice for a quick and delicious home-style lunch downtown – it’s even worth the trip if you are not already downtown (seriously, you can literally drive to anywhere in Wichita Falls from anywhere in Wichita Falls in about 7-10 minutes).

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Iron Star Cafe Logo
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Everybody loves some good ole’ Texas BBQ.  Iron Star Cafe is serving up all you can eat for just $8.95 at their new location on Johnson Rd. just off Fairway.  They even provide on-site catering for up to 1,500 guests.

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Orchid
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Large portions and distinct flavorings make Thai Orchid a great stop for any Asian cuisine lover.  They have a large variety of menu items to choose from all at a reasonable price.  Service can tend to be a little slow sometimes, so make sure you are not in a hurry when you go.

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Spaghetti_Girl
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Ever wanted to eat a Calzone the size of your head?  Well here’s your chance!  Napoli’s does not hold back when comes to portion sizes.  While the Calzones are certainly delicious, my favorite is the Spaghetti Works.  This ‘ginormous’ helping of spaghetti is complete with meat sauce, meat balls, and sausage -That’s Amore! I mean what more could a guy ask for with his spaghetti (aside from that delicious dish to the left)?

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German Guy
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Having lived in Germany for 5 years a while back, I was excited when I came across this little gem of a restaurant. An excellent source to satisfy all of my German cuisine withdrawals.  John, the owner, came to Wichita Falls after quite sometime in Germany.  It is there where he perfected the art of the Schnitzel.  If you find yourself asking ‘what the heck is a Schnitzel’? – the best way i can describe it, in Texas terms; is it’s a giant chicken fried piece of pork .  There are many ways to dress up your Schnitzel.  There’s the Jaeger-Schnitzel – smothered with brown gravy and mushrooms, the  Zwiebel-Schnitzel – topped with fried onions or the Rahm-Schnitzel – with a cream and mushroom sauce. But what goes best with a fried piece of breaded pork?  Well, more pork of course! That’s why I like the Cordon Bleu Schnitzel – Stuffed with ham and cheese. They also have some other authentic German cuisines, but the Schnitzel is sehr gut! Go check out their website and listen to some German folk music while perusing the menu.

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Hibiscus_Cafe
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This one is a recent discovery of mine.  Going back to my days living in Germany, if it wasn’t Schnitzel on my plate then next in line was a big juicy Greek Gyro.  Ever since I left Europe, i have been on the search for the perfect gyro.  Well, I am here to tell you that I search no more! Hibiscus Café serves numerous authentic Greek entrées, but the go-to has got to be that thick pita bread filled with shaved lamb meat, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and extra tzatziki sauce (a dipping sauce derived from yogurt, garlic, cucumber, olive oil and lemon juice).  Hibiscus Café is a pretty small establishment so as long as you don’t mind rubbing elbows with your fellow diners, you should definitely give it a try.

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Samurai_of_Tokyo
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I specified the lunch menu at Samurai of Tokyo just to remain cohesive with the theme of cheap restaurants, but Samurai’s dinner menu is delectable as well. but, back to the lunch – you just can’t beat a Japanese-style meal cooked fresh before your eyes by a professional Hibachi chef for under $8.  Weekly lunch specials ranging from Hibachi chicken, steak and fish are always a treat.  And if you have ever been to Samurai, then you know of the marvelous saucy goodness they call ‘shrimp sauce’! Why they tease us with that tiny dish they put the sauce in, I will never know. But because they do, you must allow that Hibachi Hero cooking your meal to spoon some ‘shrimp sauce’ onto your rice.  I like to dig a small cavern into the center of my steaming pile of fried rice and have him dump a heap of the sauce into it until my rice looks like a gurgling volcano of goodness – ok sure – a little over the top, maybe; but you can’t deny the tantalizing flavor of the Samurai signature sauce. Only problem with eating here is that you tend to carry a distinct Hibachi food smell with you for the rest of the day. Samurai of Tokyo – Come hungry. Leave overly satisfied…and smelly.

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Well That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. I hope that perhaps you were briefly introduced to a new restaurant in Wichita Falls that you have not tried yet.  Or maybe you even found out about a new category of cuisine all together (because, ‘American’ food can get a little boring sometimes).

I’m sure that you have your own favorites, some maybe on this list, and some not. So if you know of  a place that just has to be included, feel free to continue the list in the comments section below.

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