NYE Dinners for Under $50

By SARAH BAICKER

Updated 5:40 AM EST, Wed, Dec 31, 2008

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New Year's Eve gets expensive—fast.

Keep your wallet from going empty Wednesday by checking out one of the restaurants doing a prix-fix event. If you play it smart, you can dine at any of these for less than $50 per person.

Alma de Cuba
1623 Walnut St.
Alma will ring in 2009 with three prix fix options. The early seating, which includes a three-course menu at 5 p.m., is just $40 a person.

Bindi
105 S. 13th St.
Award-winning Indian BYOB Bindi regularly hosts prix fix evenings for special events—and New Year’s Eve is no exception. Three seatings all include three courses. But arrive between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m., and your evening costs $40 each.

Cuba Libre
10 S. 2nd St.
The “Twilight Dinner Prix Fix” at Cuba Libra checks in at just $32 per person. And compared to the Late Dinner Package (which costs $95/person), it’s a heck of a deal. Reservations are accepted between 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.

Distrito
3945 Chestnut St.
We’re of the mind that a pretty clever way to ring in 2009 is by enjoying Craig Laban’s pick for 2008’s new restaurant of the year. Again, it’s the early show here that’ll keep your dinner on the cheap here—$45 for a regular tasting menu, and $50 for a special vegetarian tasting menu.

Fez
620 S. 2nd St.
Celebrate New Years Eve Moroccan Style, with an eight-course (yes, really) menu at Fez. The 5:30 seating will cost just $35 a person. We recommend the lamb with hiney and almonds, but there will also be hookah, champagne and belly dancers—including male belly dancers, available by special request…

Kanella
1001 Spruce St.
$45 gets you a four-course Cypriot tasting menu at Washington Square’s Kanella. Wondering what a Cypriot menu looks like? Think organic, free-range meats prepared with ingredients capers, red wine vinegar and onion.

Lolita
106 S. 13th St.
Philly’s only BYOT(equila) restaurant rings in 2009 with three prix fix seatings. The first, for reservations between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m., is $45 per person. The best margaritas in town will have you singing Auld Lang Sine all night.

London Grill
2301 Fairmount Ave.
No time restrictions for reservations at London Grill—everyone pays just $45, which includes a champagne toast at midnight. The menu includes options like foie gras, diver scallops and goat cheese gnocchi. Yum.

Mémé
2201 Spruce St.
Welcome 2009 with a gourmet meal from chef David Katz. How does charcoal roasted goat paired with a blood orange bellini sound, for instance? For just $50, Mémé’s got you covered—but be sure to make reservations.

Mercato
1216 Spruce St.
Mercato’s early prix fix seating between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. For $45, choose from a three-course menu that includes tantalizing options like black winter truffles and poached egg; goat cheese-stuffed pumpkin agnolotti; and shortrib ravioli.

Mi Lah
218 S. 16th St.
Around Town chose Mi Lah as the best vegetarian restaurant, and we’re pretty sure it’s also one of the best places to eat on New Year’s Eve, too. $40 gets you four delectable courses, and Mi Lah’s convenient location means you’re likely just blocks away from whatever your post-dinner plans may be.

Valanni
1229 Spruce St.
Valanni’s early seating at 5 p.m. includes three courses for just $45. The menu features duck ravioli, shrimp and lobster bisque, and roasted striped bass—just to name a few. Catch a show at the WILMA before or after dinner, and you’ll get $5 off.

Xochitl
408 South St.
Four courses of Xochitl’s exotic Mexican cuisine cost just $50 a person on New Year’s Eve. Paired with drinks like Espuma de Granada (blanco tequila, guava nectar and pomegranate foam) and Menta con Jengibre (blanco tequila, ginger liquer, muddled mint and fresh lime), and you’ll truly be having a feliz ano nuevo.