Cheap places to eat in London can often feel like a pipe dream, but if you're a savvy eater, you'll know how to stretch a tenner, heck, even a fiver, without compromising on flavour. The capital is teeming with spots where every meal feels like a steal.
Whether you’re craving fragrant Thai food in Soho, juicy tacos in Peckham, or a perfect pasta in Shoreditch that won’t make your wallet weep, we’ve scoured the city to find the best bargain bites from affordable restaurants. Consider this your essential guide to eating well in London, without the luxury price tag.
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Our Guide To Cheap Eats In London
1. Roti King
- Locations: Spitalfields, Euston, Battersea, and Waterloo
- Price: rotis from £9.75, sides from £4.75
- Cuisine: Malaysian
- Why we recommend: we love how fragrant and fresh the food is here, and the signature roti canais simply melt in the mouth
Roti King can be found in Euston, Waterloo, Spitalfields and Battersea, serving exceptional Malaysian street food. Its journey, led by chef Sugen Gopal, began at the former outpost where it picked up hype, finding queues of people eager to get their hands on its signature food. Now, having expanded across the city, booking a table is much easier, and the budget-friendly prices have been maintained.
The headline roti canai is here in all its flaky, buttery glory, stretched and cooked in the open kitchen before landing at your table with dhal, chicken, mutton or fish, with prices starting from £9.75. You can also inhale classics like nasi goreng and deeply comforting beef rendang, served with steamed coconut rice.
Roti King can be found at four locations across London.
2. Padella
- Locations: 6 Southwark Street, Borough Market, SE1 1TQ and 1 Phipp Street, Shoreditch, EC2A 4PS
- Price: pasta from £9.50
- Cuisine: Italian
- Why we recommend: we think that Padella proves that great pasta doesn’t need white tablecloths, just good ingredients, a little patience and an appetite
Padella in Shoreditch and London Bridge instinctively understands the art of affordable, delicious pasta. The Michelin-recognised, Bib Gourmand pasta favourite from Jordan Frieda and Tim Siadatan (also behind Trullo in Islington) has been quietly redefining what affordable Italian dining looks like since it first opened at Borough Market in 2016.
Fresh, handmade pasta arrives at prices that feel almost rebellious for London (dishes range from £9.50 to £16.50), whether it’s silky pappardelle tangled with eight-hour Dexter beef shin ragù, or tagliarini with dried chilli, garlic and pangrattato. Plus, it serves genuinely excellent tiramisu.
Tagliarini with Dorset crab, chilli and lemon (pictured right).
3. BAO London
- Locations: Marylebone, Soho, King's Cross, London Bridge, The City, Battersea, and Shoreditch
- Price: baos from £4.95
- Cuisine: Taiwanese
- Why we recommend: BAO London is a convenient, delicious place to eat, and the buns are as fluffy as air. Be warned, though, they're highly addictive
BAO London’s rise from cult street-food darling to city staple is the stuff cheap-eats legend is made of. What began as a coolbox and a steamer in an East London car park is now a mini empire of pillowy steamed buns, still priced kindly enough to keep queues snaking down the pavement.
The bao are the stars. Starting from £4.95 for a daikon bun, they're fluffy, sweet and stuffed with everything from sticky pork to crisp fried chicken. Whether you’re squeezing into the original Soho site or slurping noodles before belting out a tune in one of the karaoke rooms, it's always a good time.
The classic braised pork bao bun (pictured left).
4. Govinda's
- Location: 9 Soho Street, Soho, W1D 3DL
- Price: sides from 80p, thalis from £7.95
- Cuisine: vegetarian and vegan Indian dishes
- Why we recommend: vegetables are at the forefront, here, and plates never skimp on flavour. It's where some of the best London cheap eats can be devoured, and we highly suggest heading down for lunch
Back in 1979, when finding a vegetarian meal was difficult in London, Govinda's paved the way. It still stands strong on Soho Street today, serving authentic plant-based Indian food to hungry passersby.
You'll find a feast for every mood here - if you're really hungry, you can look forward to tucking into one of its delicious thalis: The Govinda's, The Unlimited, The Paneer, and The Veggie, starting from just £7.95 each. The a la carte has a lot to offer, too. Our favourites include the vegetable spring rolls, creamy paneer, and chapati.
Govinda's in Soho is a go-to for affordable vegetable dishes.
5. Guacamoles
- Location: 48 Rye Lane, Peckham, SE15 5BY
- Price: tacos from £11
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Why we recommend: a portion of each sale goes towards building a church back home, and you’ve got a feel-good feast that tastes even better knowing it’s doing some good too
When it comes to cheap eats, London's Guacamoles is up there with the best, with the delicious green dip coming in at £6 and tacos from £11 for three. Behind it all is Chef Manny, whose recipes come straight from his family’s cookbook in Papantla, Veracruz.
This no-frills taqueria is all about proper Mexican comfort food, with corn tortillas pressed by hand every day and loaded up in generous sets of three. Expect punchy birria beef, brilliantly fresh vegan fillings and a trio of homemade salsas on the side - fiery, smoky and tangy enough to transport you straight to Mexico City without rinsing your wallet.
The chicken tacos from Guacamoles (pictured).
6. Thai West Cafe
- Location: 87 Brewer Street, Soho, W1F 9UX
- Price: around £10 for a meal
- Cuisine: Thai
- Why we recommend: for cheap eats in Soho,
London, we think it is great, tasty and authentic food that's
value for money, with a variety of classic dishes to choose
from
Thai West Cafe is a Soho institution. Tucked away on Brewer Street, this tiny, family-run spot has been quietly feeding the West End for nearly 20 years, sticking firmly to its cheap and cheerful motto.
The menu covers all the Thai classics like fragrant curries, fiery stir-fries and slurpable noodles, with plenty of vegetarian and vegan options, all dished up fast and without fuss. It’s strictly cash-only, open for lunch and blissfully uninterested in trends, which only adds to the charm.
Grab a Thai green curry for lunch (pictured right).
7. Yada’s Green Kitchen
- Location: 104 Rye Lane, Peckham, SE15 4RZ
- Price: starters from £4, mains from £8
- Cuisine: Kurdish
- Why we recommend: there's so much variety to choose from here, and the service is often speedy too. You're looking at a very reasonable meal for two here, split down the middle
Yada’s Green Kitchen on Rye Lane is Peckham’s answer to affordable, deeply satisfying Kurdish-inspired Middle Eastern cooking - and a must-visit for cheap London eats. From its BYOB tables to the lively, convivial atmosphere, it feels like a local secret (one you’ll want to pass on).
Linked in spirit to Camberwell’s Nandine, the menu specialises in mezze and grills that pack bold flavours without denting your wallet. Smoky baba ganoush, succulent joja kebabs and generous vegetarian options all feature heavily in its well-loved repertoire. We also rave about the shawarmas - tall, glistening towers of seasoned meat turning in the semi-open kitchen are tough to resist and make for a superb quick bite.
8. ADOH!
- Location: 36 Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, WC2E 7LJ
- Price: snacks from £4, mains frrom £12
- Cuisine: Sri Lankan
- Why we recommend: if you have room, hold out for dessert, like the salted jaggery soft serve
From the team behind Kolamba, ADOH! is a cool, cheap place to eat in London that brings the chaotic energy of Sri Lankan street food straight to Covent Garden. This walk-in spot on Maiden Lane channels the energy of Colombo’s roadside eateries with a menu made for quick, hearty, no-fuss dining.
Central to the offering is kothu - chopped roti, vegetables, eggs and curry sauce tossed together on a grill - available with crab, chicken, mutton or jackfruit, and served just as it would be on the streets of Sri Lanka. Beyond that, snacky hits like devilled sausages, vadai lentil doughnuts, chilli prawn toast and crispy mutton rolls offer a playful, flavour-packed tour of the island’s favourites.
Treat yourself to a mix of dishes at ADOH!
9. Wong Kei
- Location: 41-43 Wardour Street, Soho, W1D 6PX
- Price: around £10-£15 a head
- Cuisine: Cantonese
- Why we recommend: expect portions to be hefty, while prices remain kind, and the experience is very no-nonsense
For brilliant Cantonese cooking, head to Wong Kei on Wardour Street. The menu is old-school, with classics done generously and without fuss. Stuffed bean curd, glossy roast duck and char siu are perennial favourites, alongside plenty of sweet-and-sour options designed for maximum comfort.
The real star, though, is the beef brisket and rice vermicelli soup: a deeply flavoursome, slightly sweet broth packed with tender noodles and slow-cooked beef that feels far more luxurious than its price suggests.
10. Jupiter Burger
- Location: Netil Market, 13-23 Westgate Street, Hackney, E8 3RL
- Price: £10 for a cheeseburger and fries
- Cuisine: American
- Why we recommend:
Some of the best cheap eats London has to offer come in the form of delicious, crispy and juicy smashburgers. They're a great shout if you're ravenous after a drink or two and don't want to splash the cash. One of our favourites is Jupiter Burger near London Fields.
From the team behind Dom’s Subs, the spot can be found at Netil Market, turning it into a mini shrine to In-N-Out–inspired smashed burgers. The menu is refreshingly tight: a cheeseburger, the double-patty Jupiter Burger and a house-made veggie option, all served with hand-cut, twice-cooked fries. Meat comes from local supplier Hill & Szrok, buns are Martin’s potato rolls, and the toppings are simple but spot-on.
Our Other Smashburger Cheap Eats Include:
- Dumbo - £10.90 for a classic cheeseburger
- Chuck's No.23 - single patty from £9
- Supernova - single patty from £9
- Hanbaagaasuuteeki - from £9 for a classic double cheeseburger
You can't go wrong with a smashburger in the city.
11. Baban's Naan
- Location: 51a Blackstock Road, Finsbury Park, N4 2JW
- Price: plain naans start from around £1.50, filled wraps from around £5
- Cuisine: Kurdish
- Why we recommend: Malek and his friends' passion is evident in every soft, slightly charred loaf, and it’s delivered with infectious smiles that have made Baban’s a local institution and a rite of passage for anyone in the area
Baban’s Naan has quietly earned cult status on Blackstock Road. This low-key Finsbury Park shop keeps things simple, specialising in naan-style breads that lean more towards flatbread than the puffed tandoori versions you’ll find in the average curry house.
Prices are tiny, flavours are big, and the menu offers everything from classic plain naan to cheese, sesame, za’atar, garlic and falafel - with the occasional twist on Turkish lahmacun featuring minced lamb and peppers. The magic, however, comes from the team behind the tandoor. Boss Malek and his friends, who migrated from Iran and Iraq, have been perfecting their craft for over 20 years.
Malek from Baban's Naans (pictured).
For more, check out our guide to cheap meals under £25 in London.
