Best Cheap Eats of 2018

Feeling the pinch? I am too. But I’m pleased to report that delicious and filling (and sometimes even rather healthy) cheap eats were still in abundant supply this year.

Continuing with my Best of 2018 series, my list of Best Cheap Eats is focused solely on London. However, I managed to find affordable options pretty much everywhere I roamed these past 12 months. Berlin and Kobe proved particularly fruitful destinations for budget conscious eating. As for spending less in London on food, I feel blessed to live in Walthamstow. The High Street area of Walthamstow yielded an especially awesome array of cheap eats.

By ‘cheap eats’ I mean a quality meal that costs £5 or less. Believe it or not, my list of topnotch places for such food has grown since last year. Maybe that’s more a reflection of me seeking out inexpensive spots than anything else, but whatever the case I’ve been happy with what I’ve come across.

Please note, this list merely reflects how I chose to spend my time during the year and is comprised of well established and brand new venues as well as businesses that are somehow related to where work and play took me.

Items appear in alphabetic order, not ranked.

Best Cheap Eats in London

Fresh Nan Bakery
143A High Street, E17 7DB

As the name implies, this shop on the High Street in Walthamstow bakes a variety of South Asian style flatbreads fresh on the spot in a tandoor. Get four for a quid. The place does a decent lahmacun for a mere £1.50 as well as pretty good falafel and a range of kebabs.

This is the fourth year in a row that Fresh Nan Bakery has made the ‘best of’ list for Cheap Eats.

Icco
46 Goodge Street, W1T 4LU

An Icco margherita sets you back for less than £4. This stalwart Goodge Street pizzeria remains a hero for budget conscious and time strapped folks seeking a warm and tasty meal without fuss.

This is the third year in a row that Icco has made the ‘best of’ list for Cheap Eats. Icco is also listed in my ‘best of’ list for Pizza in London.

Pilpel
Outlets across London

Pilpel for the people! A fluffy wholemeal pita stuffed with freshly made falafel and loads of salads and sauces weighs in at just under £5 and is guaranteed to keep you going well beyond time for your next meal. Look for Pilpel healthy and flavoursome falafel around Spitalfields, Aldgate, St Paul’s and Fleet Street.

This is the third year in a row that Pilpel has made the ‘best of’ list for Cheap Eats.

Pizza Union
Outlets across London

A good margharita for under £4 with lots of other pizzas priced between £5 and £6. And the pizzas are delicious too! Always filled with happy diners served their orders friendly and fast – Pizza Union’s buzzing Spitalfields and King’s Cross locations have a cheap and cheerful atmosphere – with emphasis on the cheerful!

Roti King
40 Doric Way, NW1 1LH

Who can deny roti canai – especially when it’s only £4? Feeling special? An extra £1.50 gets you even more yummy roti options. Roti King’s nicely priced menu features all sorts of flavour and sustenance with most dishes hovering around the £5 price point and nothing costing more than £7. Pay attention when heading over to this tiny Malaysian eatery behind Euston Station. If you blink you might miss it (I did on my first visit).

This is the second time that Roti Canai has made the ‘best of’ list for Cheap Eats.

Seth’s Spice Hut
Walthamstow Market, High Street, E17 7DB

Follow your nose to the end of the (inevitably long but usually swiftly moving) queue at Seth’s Spice Hut: a street market trailer nearer the Hoe Street End of Walthamstow Market. Seth’s £3.50 double kebab roll is stuffed with the juiciest and tastiest marinated lamb – and is probably the one food in London I crave the most.

This is the fourth year in a row that Seth’s made the ‘best of’ list for Cheap Eats.

Sud Italia
Old Spitalfields Market, Brushfield Street, E1 6AA

Some of London’s best Neapolitan style pizzas are baked in the wood-fired oven of the Sud Italia van near the Lamb Street entrance to Old Spitalfields Market. And if you see a queue when you go – don’t worry it’ll move fast and the pizzas are definitely worth a wait anyway! The margherita only costs a fiver and is made as it should be (DOP San Marzano tomato sauce, Extra virgin olive oil, Fresh basil, Parmesan, and Fior di latte mozzarella).

This is the second year in a row that Sud Italia has made the ‘best of’ list for Cheap Eats. Sud Italia is also listed in my ‘best of’ list for Pizza in London.

Honourable Mentions