Banh Mi

Where to get it: Anywhere in Chinatown and the Super 88 in Allston
Price Point: Under 3$ (Usually around 2.75)

(Credit to Chef's Night Out)

Banh Mi, also known as "Vietnamese Sandwiches" or "Vietnamese Subs" are, in essence, some sort of protein with cilantro, jalapeño, and pickled carrot and daikon radish all on a warm crusty baguette spread with mayo and sometimes a liver pate. The protein options range (depending on the place) from tofu to BBQ pork. No matter how you get it, it's sure to be a delicious combination of refreshing, spicy, sweet, sour and savory flavors. My advice is to look for places that don't have them sitting out in bags and will make them fresh for you. I personally like the hole-in-the-wall places, despite the language barrier because I think it tastes better, but I haven't had a bad one yet, no matter where I go.

LA Burdick's

What to get: Demi hot chocolate (Choose from Dark, Milk or White- they're all delicious!), chocolate mice/penguins, small pastries
Where is it: Harvard Square, Cambridge

Sure, it's not a lot of chocolate for 2$, but each minuscule sip (you'll need to- it's hot!) packs the chocolaty punch of a bar of chocolate. And well it might- Burdick's hot chocolate is essentially liquified chocolate, slightly diluted with milk to keep it liquid. Or at least, that's how it tastes. Either way, it's incredibly rich and more than worth it, despite the size.

(N.B- Burdick's has also started carrying single-origin hot chocolate, which is only available in the small and large sizes. They also have iced hot chocolate, but only in one size at 4.50, though you can usually ask for a demi with ice in it)

(Credit to Robyn Lee via Serious Eats NY)

And if super-chocolaty drinks aren't your thing, or if you have a little extra to splurge, they also offer the cutest mice and penguins made from the same chocolate. Seriously, aren't they just the cutest? They also have macarons (the meringue kind, not the coconut kind) and other little pastries for sale, though most of them are over the 3$ limit.

But no matter what you get, it's bound to be utterly delicious.

Linda's Doughnuts

What to get: Doughnuts and Coffee Rolls
Where is it: Belmont St in Belmont, a short ride on the 73 bus from Harvard.

Sure, it's not exactly Boston, and it's a little off the beaten path, but they say write what you know, and this place was my daily breakfast when I worked in Watertown. In fact, now that I've got a morning commute into Boston again, I've thought about getting up earlier just so I can have time to get a coffee and a doughnut from them in the morning. They are THAT good. Sadly, they're only open until about 3pm or until they run out, which ever one comes first. But making sure to get there early enough to snag a doughnut will be well worth it once you bite in. Seriously, you will be ruined for all other doughnuts to come. I love their chocolate glazed doughnuts and I can barely eat a cake doughnut at any other place. Even better, each doughnut comes to only 89 cents. That's right, each sweet, crispy pillow of deliciousness can be yours for less than ONE DOLLAR. Tell me that's not amazing.

The birth of Three Dollar Treats!

Hello and welcome to the first post on this little blog of mine. I moved to Boston a little over three years ago, and one thing I kept hearing from other people both before I moved and afterwards was that food was so much more expensive here than in other cities. However, as I went around the city, I discovered that as long as you weren't expecting full three-course meals for 10$, it was completely possible to eat well for not a whole lot of money. So this blog is my attempt to catalog and record my findings of delicious foo!ds for cheap in this great city of ours. Most will be small single items, but oh boy, each one will be worth it.

So without further ado, welcome to Three Dollar Treats!