YC's is a great place to hit up if you have a hunger gap that is bigger then a normal restaurant can fill. It is a build-it yourself mongolian grill and the possibilities are endless for what you can create. No matter what you get, if you are smart, you can manage to stuff enough food in your $12 bowl to feed a small village. The trick is to use the bottom of another bowl to smash your ingredients down.
They have been cracking down on that sneekiness as of late, but if you can get away with it, it is well worth it. Another important point is that they charge you 50 cents for a to-go box, but you will need one so just plan on adding that to the budget. Also, when you are building your meal, the red meats will be more flavorful and you will most certainly need to add more flavorings than the amounts listed on their ingredient list. Have fun because this place is worth it.