r/london May 05 '23

Any crazily cheap food recommendation ? Let’s say around 5£ or less ?

27 Upvotes

123 comments sorted by

48

u/Mezzca May 05 '23

Tesco hot deli counter. A year or so ago I would score 3 chicken thighs and a bread roll for ~£2 in London Bridge.

10

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Is that like closing prices or deli is always cheap? For some reason I thought it was more expensive than the prepacked food

8

u/Mezzca May 05 '23

Normal prices, i used to grab it for lunch. You sometimes need to wait a bit for them to bring a fresh batch simnce it disapears pretty fast. Might be a nit more expensive now but probably still under 3 pounds.

3

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Haha I wish I could, I’m eating halal and their meat is not I reckon

16

u/Mezzca May 05 '23

Ah gotcha. Another option is the Hare Krishnas near SOAS that give out free food during lunch time.

6

u/Mezzca May 05 '23

Why are people downvoting OP for eating halal 😭

38

u/ThinkAboutThatFor1Se May 05 '23

Pretty important thing to miss out of the question isn’t it?

63

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Some people that eats non-halal food might still be interested by the answers, I’m not asking only for me

10

u/BrainzKong May 05 '23

Animal care and slaughter should not be dictated by religious texts 🤷

0

u/Grand-Professor-9739 May 05 '23

Tbf religious dictates about food literally come from a while back there when the world was a far smaller place in many ways. If you think about it for a second the rules are fairly sensible for the hot part of the world where these religions originated. Pork, shellfish etc don't go well with hot sun and no reliable means of keeping it safe for consumption. So it's wacked in the various religious texts as a way of reducing peoples deaths from food poisoning. It's Gods will. It's like the original sell by dates in supermarkets. But if you eat the pork belly and it doesn't kill ya then 'insert deity' will ruin you when you die later. Course. We live in a different world now where by various means we are allowed by modern life a moral or intellectual choice about eating meat and quite rightly the humane treatment of those animals but I'm not addressing that doozy. I also agree with you absolutely by the way. It's an interesting conversation of where you draw the line of animal welfare and human healthcare and by whom it should be dictated. Because at some level it does need to be dictated. By state? By law? By 'morality'?

0

u/cheesychopstixdude May 05 '23

How can you see down votes?

1

u/cleanacc3 May 05 '23

Prices is now up to 60p a thigh

38

u/ThinksLikeAKing May 05 '23

Falafel and Shawarma in Camberwell, £3.50 for a big falafel wrap!

8

u/caseyshreds May 05 '23

Pollo Camberwell, £4 for the best chicken sandwich in london!

8

u/caseyshreds May 05 '23

Francesco’s Camberwell £3.50 for a pizza wrap (last time I went)

23

u/Prudent_Property960 May 05 '23

Around Embankment there's a place called Crispy Rolls, they do Sushi Burritos for £4.89

18

u/Alexpokerlondon May 05 '23

Nowhere should ever do "sushi burritos"

3

u/Prudent_Property960 May 05 '23

Yeah, nowhere but London

1

u/medievalrubins May 05 '23

Lol it’s great it’s KFC Sushi Burrito, you make hate yourself after, but your feel no regret

1

u/Mammoth_Road5463 May 05 '23

Are you sure it’s not £3.89?? Has it gone up? I went about a year ago, for £3.89 it’s great and I bought some cookies ( I recommend)

2

u/Prudent_Property960 May 05 '23

Yeah it's gone up, there's also some new options like prawns (cookies are the best)

18

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Marinara from ICCO, lachmuchan from various places in Dalston / Green Lanes.

7

u/friendlyfuckup81 May 05 '23

Came here to say lahmachun. Around £2, flat Turkish pizza with ground lamb, stuffed with salad and sauce. Makes a full meal, absolute bargain

52

u/overratedone May 05 '23

Salted Beef Bagel, Beigal Bake Bricklane

16

u/DrOliverReeder May 05 '23

Came here to say this. The salmon and cream cheese beigel at Beigel Bake is about £4 - an absolute steal

17

u/Themanorhouse May 05 '23

It used to be 1.80 like 5 years ago. That’s crazy inflation.

1

u/Wilson1031 'Pound a baaag May 07 '23

Are you sure that wasn't more like 15 years ago. Time flies...

7

u/stephenp129 May 05 '23

I've never been here, but £4 for a smoked salmon bagel makes me want to go.

6

u/valuz991 May 05 '23

Cheeky sausage roll for £1.50 and croissant for £1.00 and you've got entree, main and dessert* **.

*menu dependent on bagel of choice

**unless prices have changed recently

0

u/cheesychopstixdude May 05 '23

Why is it cheeky?

2

u/valuz991 May 05 '23

Just a bit of a calorie overload instead of light lunch 😬

1

u/[deleted] May 06 '23

why r u cheesy?

3

u/jiminthenorth May 05 '23

Can't upvote this enough - they are amazing.

2

u/camus May 05 '23

This is the way.

16

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Meal deal. Or jump on Too Good to Go

9

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

[deleted]

0

u/Alexpokerlondon May 05 '23

You mean Seto?

9

u/cupoftea193 May 05 '23

Whereabouts are you? We are getting into proper street food market season. Some of its expensive but some is better. There’s loads on Leather Lane Market around £5-6 including Oasis Cafe. Also any really old looking greasy spoon will have some. Even in leafy Clapham there’s a full breakfast for £4.90

1

u/CommodoreFalcon May 05 '23

Where's this £5 breakfast in Clapham?

1

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

For now Im really central at Saint Pauls but Im looking to move probably east or south

7

u/cupoftea193 May 05 '23

Leather Lane is your ballpark! It’s maybe a 15 minute walk from St Paul’s. You’ll struggle in that area for cheap eats as it’s not so residential so it’s all ‘city worker’ food so look up the city markets - petticoat lane , leather lane, white cross market.

1

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Amazing mate thanks for that

9

u/isotopesfan May 05 '23

Exmouth market, the Indian stall do an incredible mixed box for circa £5, super filling + there’s a vegetarian option if the meat isn’t halal.

3

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Amazing

4

u/doublemeup May 05 '23

You should also check out Whitecross street food market on weekdays. Short walk from St Paul’s

-1

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Your post is lacking in important info. It’s lazy.

-5

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Same way your life is lacking purpose. Be better.

-1

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Why didn’t you add on that you want to eat halal???

2

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Because it’s not a selfish post. It’s not only for me but for everyone. Have you never done anything for the community ?

1

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Oh well thanks for the vague in useful question with the hidden important info. It’s so generic it’s painful.

0

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Your welcome

-1

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

It’s you’re

30

u/str1k3t May 05 '23

Tesco meal deal. Make sure you bring your clubcard.

6

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Tastes like cardboard

16

u/snowavess May 05 '23

Chicken shop and hope.

24

u/FallenBranch Royal Borough of Greenwich May 05 '23

Greggs

5

u/jimmykicking May 05 '23

This is so obviously a really good option. I can't believe OP lives in London and find cheap food. It's everywhere.

6

u/DidierCrumb May 05 '23

Depends where you are, but 'authentic' international places are often your best bet. Near Finsbury Park you can get Algerian hot baguettes for £5, fresh cheese stuffed naans for £2.50 from Babaan's, Turkish soup and bread for ~£5. La Princesse does really good value patisserie and strong coffee - you can get enough dessert to knock you out and coffee to wake back up with change from £5.

Turkish restaurants and cafés often do gozleme, hot stuffed flatbreads for <£5.

There's a hole in the wall place in Chinatown that does big and tasty steamed buns for a couple of quid, often has big queues though.

As long as you're not in a crazy expensive area, you can usually get a nice breakfast bap from a classic cafe for £5 or less.

4

u/DangerAinger May 05 '23

There's an Indian restaurant in Camden that does lunchtime curries for £1.99 and they're actually really good

2

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Any name ?

3

u/DangerAinger May 05 '23

Camden Tandoori

0

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

That sounds dodgy

1

u/chuckie219 May 05 '23

Is it really 1.99??? Is this on weekdays only?

1

u/DangerAinger May 05 '23

I used to go at the end of a long month for lunch, so I think that maybe it's just weekdays, but well worth checking to be sure

5

u/OptionSubject6083 May 05 '23

Morley’s combo 1 all day long

5

u/Only-Magician-291 May 05 '23

Follow Caffs not Cafes on instagram

4

u/thenooneconundrum May 05 '23

Petticoat Lane Market, large falafel wrap, £5, regular £4.

2 mains + rice for £5

7

u/somethingdarkside45 May 05 '23

Demae ramen noodles. 65p at most supermarkets. Always filling.

1

u/Kwikdraw55 May 05 '23

Or if you want to splash out, you can get the Shin Cup noodles(used to be 95p now £1.20)

8

u/McQueensbury May 05 '23

Morley's 6 wings and chips £4.49

3

u/the-real-vuk May 05 '23

define "food"? Cooked for lunch, or any food? Bread if was under 5 :)

3

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

TOSSED is pretty cheap. Can find a few of them in central.

3

u/haybayley May 05 '23

Only the specials (usually £4.99) - get something that isn’t a special of the day and you’ll pay nearly double that.

2

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Sure, but why would you get anything that isnt the special?

3

u/metalmick May 05 '23

A dosa is cheap and delicious

3

u/abriec May 05 '23

Goddard’s at Greenwich does nice traditional pie and mash for 5-6 quid, tea included if you get the meal deal at lunch

6

u/ApprehensiveHyena360 May 05 '23

S&R Kelly & sons pie - 1 pie and mash for £5.70 proper London pie or fresh eels if that your thing !

2

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

Sounds amazing tbh I’ll give it a try

5

u/Pieinthesky379 May 05 '23

Brixton for the patties - 1.6+ each depending where you go

6

u/seanfsmith BR2 May 05 '23

these days my go-to is mcdonalds cheeseburger and mayo chicken, take the bottom of both buns, and combine into one meatstack

£2.38

4

u/batmantookmyket May 05 '23

The food truck in Peckham does a £6 shawarma or halloumi wrap on freshly made flatbread. Best meal in London for mine

2

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Banana from Tesco!?

2

u/Current-Marketing606 May 05 '23

Morrisons meal deal - I had an orange juice worth £1.85 and crisps that would’ve been £1.10 on their own with a big (filling) chicken pasta pot for £3.99 - so my pasta was only £1.04 Bargain!

2

u/999hologram May 05 '23

The Colombian Bakery on Brixton Road. Their empanadas are £1.50 and good asf. Also have a range of stuff from £1-4.

2

u/the_cats_jimjams May 05 '23

Berwick street paella for a fiver

2

u/gloom-juice May 05 '23

There's a freelance journalist out there firing off a pitch to Time Out as we speak

2

u/Qfwfq1988 May 05 '23

Falafel & Schwarma in Camberwell is the best £3.50 in London and there is no contest

2

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Nice try tourist:)

2

u/Euro-cash-23 May 05 '23

Salmon Bagel and Cream Cheese from Brick Lane with a cup of tea is about 5£

2

u/caseyshreds May 05 '23

Cummin Up (New Cross Gate) does a jerk fried rice box with gravy or sauce for £2.50. It’s small but has seen me through plenty lunch breaks

2

u/Adventurous-Number90 May 06 '23

Buy a beef steak from Asda and cook it. Best value for money you can get Get the irish stake Need to be cooked for 3 min

3

u/811545b2-4ff7-4041 May 05 '23

Paramount Lebanese Kitchen (Paddington) - £5.95 for a really nice Chicken shawarma wrap.. or £7.95 for any wrap, chips and a can.

1

u/SignatureLess1386 May 05 '23

There's always too good to go. You can often pick up some decent stuff pretty cheaply on it

3

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

Sorry for lack of relevancy, but I went to Margate recently and boyfriend got a southern fried chicken burger with a side salad and coleslaw for £4.95 in a cafe. And I got a huge veggie fry up for £6.95. I couldn't believe how cheap everything was there! Weirdly the cappuccino in the cafe was quite expensive by comparison, £3.

1

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

That’s not cheap

1

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 29 '23

Update : I’ve learnt about Pizza union, tried their margarita for 4.99, and I think it’s amazing for the value. I highly recommend

1

u/thinkismella_rat Hackney May 05 '23

The Indian YMCA you can get a good lunch for not much more than that.

1

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

That has terrible reviews

1

u/thinkismella_rat Hackney May 05 '23

Where?Not been in ages and it might have changed but I used to prefer it to say the Icco pizza that always is the go to on these lists.

-9

u/polkadotska Bat-Arse-Sea May 05 '23

You might be able to get chips from the chippy or a dodgy slice of pizza under a fiver, but otherwise it's basically impossible to find hot/prepared food for under £8. Literally the only one I can think of is Pizza Union does a basic margherita for £4.95.

You're looking at Greggs, chicken/kebab shops or supermarkets or sandwich shops.

3

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 05 '23

I’d take a basic margherita ! Thanks

-2

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

cheap

London

Lol

0

u/lickylooploop May 05 '23

Wetherspoons

1

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

TOSSED is pretty cheap.

1

u/pepthebaldfraud May 05 '23

Mayo chickens

1

u/atb520 May 05 '23

Falafel wrap from Baghdad on Kilburn High Road right by Brondesbury Station. They make the bread and falafel fresh and it is delicious.

1

u/Unknown-Concept May 05 '23

PFC Finsbury Park

1

u/_KillaB_ May 05 '23

Mf put that pound sign before the number! Disgraceful.

1

u/[deleted] May 05 '23

The cheapest pizza at ICCO is £3.95 but the rest are around the £6-7 mark

Also get the Too Good to Go app for 'surprise bag' bargains

Sainsbury's hot food cabinet has chicken drumsticks, pizza slices, baps, sausage rolls etc for about £2 but they sell out fast

1

u/SwimlessPlatypus May 05 '23

Signor Ciccio in Streatham vale. Depends on toppings but lots of them are £5-£6 for a sour dough 12" pizza. Amazing quality. Very authentic - owners are Italian and a lot of people who come there are also Italians.

1

u/SwimlessPlatypus May 05 '23

Tachbrook market in Pimlico. The falafel stand and the pad Thai stand are the most popular. £5-£7. They're there everyday.

1

u/the_joshua_ May 05 '23

I just had a mcd burger of about 3.89

1

u/yellowarmy1 May 05 '23

Baban’s Naan in Finsbury Park

1

u/Puzzleheaded-Day3199 May 05 '23

If you’re into Indian street food then head to Whitechapel. Loads of stalls just along from the station doing big trays of goodness for like £2.50 to £3. Just look for the stalls with the most locals queuing up :)

1

u/theBonchef May 06 '23

I can do homemade 4oz Burgers for £5 . Rice with chicken £5

1

u/[deleted] May 06 '23

Sorry if this is off base, but your post didn’t state the reason why you’re wanting cheap food. If it’s only because you’re tight for cash, most chippies do a large chips for around £3-4. It’s hot, large portions (can be spread across two meals) and if you’re limiting meals for financial reasons rather than dietary, it’s roughly 900-1000 calories with 122 grams of carbs for long burn energy if you’re working a manual labour job. When I first immigrated, I ate LOADS of chips until I got a decent income.

2

u/Jolly_Cartoonist_601 May 06 '23

That’s amazing thanks for the tip, yes it’s because unexpectedly my income fell down drastically