Sharing good deals: East Side Marios

Just sharing our love for East Side Marios as a cheap meal out if done "right". Here's my tips:

• My first East Side Marios tip is to order a meal that comes with the unlimited soup/salad and homeloaf. Even this alone, without a special, can yield a meal to take home if you just eat the free stuff. I will order a decent large meal that I often split into two meals when I get home, and fill up as my meal on free warm loaves, a bowl of cesar salad and then either a second bowl or a couple bowls of the Italian wedding soup (it will depend on your server if they will let you "switch" from salad to soup, but usually they will)
• Watch for their specials.. ESM has recently done a few specials that seem to rotate, besides their normal weekly specials. One special is that Tuesday's are unlimited pasta for something like $11.99. Then there was the "eat one and take one home" where you got your meal and then they prepackaged one for you to take home into the fridge. Then there's the one we did today that is their "12 for $12" which are a selection of 12 meals (one is build your own pasta which is another 300 combinations hah) that still includes unlimited freebies 

• Sneaky trick.. when you are just about full and ready to pop, ask for another bowl of salad. Eat some of it, then ask for a takeout container and take it home (best for eating the same day). You can often do the same thing with a loaf of their bread
• Coffee and pops are free refills, like usual. This is always a good spend of the small price tag 
• Remember to use coupons if you have them. Any discount is good, especially if there's no special going on. Groupon will sometimes offer a "gift card" type deal, which is worth it if it's your nearby store!

• Sign up for their emails and get a freebie appetizer. Save it and whip it out when you have some friends to help eat them

• Pay with a credit card and get the extra points/cash back/air miles, whatever your card gives back. A meal for two will often crest $20 which is usually the minimum for 1 air mile or points 
• Don't forget to show your Scene card and get some points towards free movies 
• Finally, get those awesome lollipops if your server forgets to give them.. these things are delightful 

My meal tonight was build your own pasta which came home in its entirety, 1 bowl of salad, and 2 bowls of soup. I think we polished off 3 loaves of bread too. Hubby had bruschetta pizza and 2 salad bowls. Our total came to $33