India Palace

We needed a quick stop lunch place last week before Bug's nap and dh came up with a brilliant idea - India Palace in downtown Salem.

It's been a while since we've been there, but it's always been a past favorite. They have a fantastic weekly lunch buffet deal there too - $8 per person for all you can eat and that includes the drink!

Bug was starving and needed food asap so it was great to walk in the door and start putting a plate together for her right away. It was a perfect lunch for little toddler fingers - salad, fresh fruit, rice, bread and a mild curry plus some rice pudding for desert.

The seating area was clean, the staff was very nice and because it was setup for their lunch buffet it was easy to get her a smaller plate, silverware, a straw, etc.

Dh did take her to the bathroom while we were there and he did say that their bathroom was very dirty and was all around old and worn.

I forgot to ask when they start to charge for kids, but the cashier didn't even ask us for dd's age and we weren't charged for her at all so it was a very reasonable price for lunch. We left stuffed and ready for naptime!

Costco

We don’t shop at Costco often, but there are a few items that I can get there cheaper than other places (broccoli, spinach, celery, carrots, lettuce and we really like their organic sprouted bread). Until Bug got old enough to start eating solids, I had pretty much ignored the samples. I swear, a mom must’ve come up with this idea. Going into Costco with a fidgety toddler who hates to sit in a cart, who at the very sight of little samples of food will sit calmly for the whole time I’m shopping is wonderful.

We had to make a quick trip yesterday to pick up a few things right around lunchtime. It was raining when we arrived and all of the carts were soaked. I was so thankful when we came inside and the greeters had towels to wipe down them down so that kids don’t have to sit in a wet seat (plus it decreases the amount of puddles around the store that people could slip in).

We made our way to the back and Bug snacked on bites of turkey and carrot sticks while I grabbed our necessities.

I also have to add that I love looking at toys and kids books there, especially around Christmas time. They always have a great selection that is reasonably priced. In years past, I’ve had very good luck buying book sets to give as presents that were all within my budget.

We almost always stop in the food area up front to buy lunch because it is so cheap – you can’t beat $1.50 for a hot dog/sausage and a drink or $1.99 for a slice of pizza (you can also call ahead and order a whole 18” pizza for only $9.99).

As much as I like the deals on the food though, they definitely need to amp up their cleaning in this area. I almost always have to clean the table myself. I also don’t like having garbage cans right next to the tables because Bug inevitably puts her hands all over them. I also wish their tables were organized a little better. It’s a little difficult to manage keeping your cart near you while eating unless you get lucky and an end spot opens up. I also would appreciate having some high chairs there as well because Bug often falls off of the picnic-table benches while she’s trying to reach her food.

Have you noticed any other kid friendly things at Costco?

Sweet Tomatoes

We had family visit this weekend so this morning we decided to drive up to have brunch at Sweet Tomatoes in Tigard. Sweet Tomatoes has been a favorite of ours for years. It is an all-you-can-eat soup and salad bar restaurant that always has fresh ingredients, tons of variety with soups, baked potatoes, muffins, breads, pasta, fruit and lots more. It’s a great place to take kids to because they have so many different options to choose from and if one item gets vetoed it’s easy to find something else that they will like. This is another restaurant that I’m an e-club member of. I almost always have a "buy 1 meal + beverage get 1 meal for free" coupon.

There are so many things to love besides the food – easy access from I-5, these little ingenius roller carts that you can place your baby in while you’re dishing up so that you can be hands free, the friendly staff who will offer to carry your tray to your table if you have your arms full of toddler, a super clean restaurant, their labeling of potential food allergens and whether an item is vegetarian or not. I personally have a sensitivity to MSG and sulfites, which are very rarely labeled. I can't remember ever seeing another restaurant labeling sulfites so they instantly go to the top of my list simply because of this.

Today was the first time that we’ve ever had brunch there. When we arrived with our guests I realized that one of the coupons I’d printed was the wrong one, but the manager allowed us to use our "buy 1 meal + beverage get 1 meal for free" coupon twice, which saved us $16.00! In addition to their soup and salads, they also had fixings for breakfast burritos, potatoes O’Brien, biscuits and gravy, cinnamon chip biscuits, breakfast focaccia and all kinds of other things.

When we found a booth, we started to search for a high chair and to our surprise an employee was already heading our direction with one. I usually run my hands over the chair first (if I forget to bring my high chair cover) to see if I might need to wash it, but I honestly could not find a speck of grime or stickness.

Bug ate salad, kidney beans, chicken noodle soup and scrambled eggs with ham and potatoes plus a little bit of Jell-O all for free since she is still under 3 years old. Their pricing for 3-5 year olds is $2.99 and for 6-12 year olds it is $4.69.

Once completely stuffed, we rolled ourselves back out to the car and dd took a nice nap on our way home to enjoy the rest of our lazy Sunday.

Restaurants

Here is a directory of restaurants that we have reviewed so far:
Coffee House Cafe
India Palace
Marie Callender's
Olive Garden
The Original Roadhouse Grill
Sweet Tomatoes in Tigard
Word of Mouth Bistro
La Hacienda Real
Chipotle

Marie Callender's

Due to the economy, my husband has been laid off the better part of the last 6 months. Going out to eat is a rare treat so when we do got out we need to find the best deals possible for all of us.

Joining e-clubs that are available at some restaurants is great because they offer coupons and birthday deals. Marie Callender’s offers some of the best deals that we’ve found so far. I often get coupons for buy 1 get 1 lunch for free from them. An everyday deal though is that with the purchase of 1 adult entrée and drink, kids eat for free.

A few weeks ago we decided to take advantage of this while we were out running errands at that end of town (we do a lot of our shopping at Morrow and Sons on Silverton Road because of fantastic prices!).

Trying to stick to a budget, we ordered water with our meals. Our helpful waiter reminded us that if at least 1 of us purchased a drink that Bug’s meal would be free so we happily obliged. Their menu offers the typical kids’ menu options. Bug asked for “noodles,” so we decided to try the “Curly Noodles with Alfredo Sauce,” which comes with a slice of bread and desert options of a sundae, a slice of apple or chocolate cream pie. I would have liked to have seen maybe some steamed veggies or some fruit to go along with the meal though.

We usually add their all you can eat soup and salad bar, fill up and take our meals home. This also allowed us to get some things for Bug to crunch on while we waited for our orders. Bug snacked away at salad and slurped on soup while coloring a paper that could be entered for a chance to win a bike.

I was very pleased when Bug’s food arrived and the waiter informed us that it was warm and not hot – this is the first restaurant that we have been to that made a point of keeping the temperature of her food safe – this won huge points with me. The noodles got a big thumbs up from Bug.

To top off our nice lunch experience, the waiter brought Bug a balloon, which always makes her happy as can be.