Ten cheap London lunches, and most of them cost under £10

Beef chopped and fried with sumac, parsley, onion and tomato, rolled in lavash and handed over for £4.50: the tantuni at Durak Tantuni is Time Out’s number one cheap eat in London, and it is served until 2am. With the average London pint at £6.55 this year, everything below costs about the same as a drink, give or take a few pounds.

How we chose: Time Out’s cheap-eats and cafe lists (May and September 2026), The Infatuation’s best-value guide (July 2026) and the venues’ own sites, keeping places with a full meal at or near £10.

Durak Tantuni

London’s first tantuni makers work the griddle on West Green Road every day from noon to 2am. A single wrap is £4.50 and a double only 50p more, so get the double, with the green pickled peppers on the side.

West Green Road, Turnpike Lane · wrap £4.50 · daily noon–2am · walk-in

Shree Krishna Vada Pav

Under a railway arch in Vauxhall, six kinds of vada pav, the potato-fritter bun from Mumbai, cost £2.50–7.40. Start with the plain one, then the cheese version, then a dabeli. There is a second branch on Eastcastle Street in Fitzrovia.

South Lambeth Road, Vauxhall · vada pav from £2.50 · daily 11am–9:30pm · walk-in

Chinese Tapas House

Jianbing, the Chinese breakfast pancake, comes off the hotplate here with spring onion, chilli oil, pickles and hoisin for £6, plus £1–3 for extra fillings. Add a £2 skewer. Expect a queue at this Chinatown hatch.

Little Newport Street, Chinatown · jianbing £6 · daily 11:30am–9pm · walk-in

Wong Kei

Cash only, shared tables and wonton soup at £7.50 have kept this Wardour Street Cantonese going since the 1980s. Upgrade to the wonton noodle ho fun soup at £9.50, or add roast meat.

Wardour Street, Chinatown · wonton soup £7.50 · cash only · walk-in

Supernova

Two patties, American cheese, diced onion and house sauce: that is the £10 house cheeseburger on Peter Street, and it is the only thing to order.

Peter Street, Soho · cheeseburger £10

Paul Rothe & Son

The same family has run this Marylebone Lane deli since 1900, and the staff still wear white coats. A cucumber and cream cheese sandwich is £3.50; the pastrami, at £9, is the one to have.

Marylebone Lane · sandwiches £3.50–9 · Mon–Fri 8:30am–4pm, Sat from 11:30am · walk-in

Master Wei

Chef Guirong Wei cooks the food of Xi’an on Cosmo Place, and the beef biang biang noodles, wide and hand-pulled, are what to order. Most dishes cost £6–15.

Cosmo Place, Bloomsbury · dishes £6–15 · book online

Angel Dabang

Modelled on a Korean dabang, the old-style coffee house, this Barnsbury cafe sells coffee, tea and bunsik snacks. Have the egg sandwich at £4.50. It is shut on Sundays and Mondays.

Liverpool Road, Barnsbury · egg sandwich £4.50 · Tue–Sat · walk-in

Happy Dim Sum

At about £2 a serving, the dim sum on Seven Sisters Road costs less than anywhere else in this piece. The Infatuation praises the wafer-thin cheung fun, and the har gau come four to a portion.

Seven Sisters Road, Holloway · dim sum about £2

Silk Road

Cumin-rubbed Xinjiang lamb skewers at £2 each are why you come to this Camberwell Church Street canteen. Order five, plus the hand-pulled noodles in chilli oil, about £10.

Camberwell Church Street · skewers £2

Checked October 2026.