As a fellow lefty, I know how hard it can be to find clubs in a store, especially if one doesn't live near one of those "mega"golf shops, and for starter sets, general sporting goods stores rarely carry LH clubs. That being said, I am forced to make lots of blind purchases off the internet. Most have turned out well, others didn't suit me and I sold them or banished them to the basement.
For a full set at that pricepoint, you'll either be looking at a "house brand" starter set, or else used (very used) clubs. Examples are Walter Hagen from Dick's/Golf Galaxy, or Zevo or Snake-yes from Golfsmith. If your friend is a true absolute beginner and doesn't care what label is on the clubs, I'd personally go for the full set as it will be easier to get the whole package including bag in one purchase just for convenience.
Here's just one example I found:
http://www.golfsmith.com/product/30057184/zevo-zevo-z4-17-piece-set
Years ago I used to have some Zevo irons (when they were a small independent company before being bought by Golfsmith) and they were pretty nice.
Now the knock on most starter sets is that the shafts tend to be pretty flexible, and quality-wise some of the clubs may not hold up as well over time compared to most of the big brands. But just for occasional use, or for learning the game from scratch, a starter set will probably be fine.