Today’s lunch special is…

Yes, I’ve definitely become more frugal lately, but I never used to be the kind of person who walked by a listing of daily specials in front of a restaurant and thought, “Hey, I think I’ll order that.” In fact, I was typically the one who refused to order whatever the special du jour might be, if only out of obstinance.

Those days are gone. Now that I’m seriously watching my pesos, I’m intrigued by a daily special that’s really, you know, special.

Today at the cheery Los Tules Mexican Restaurant at 1656 Broadway, I had a pretty terrific lunch platter: a cheese-drenched burrito filled with fat chunks of cooked pork and refried beans and a tostada the size of a dessert plate, a pile of Spanish rice, and a beverage for $7.50.

The cost more than made up for the inconvenience of having to park over a block away — because the construction of the new Performing Arts Center right across the street has caused all the parking near the restaurant to evaporate.