LONDON IS NOT one the world’s cheapest places for eating out. It is not difficult to spend a great deal of money on a meal that is far from satisfactory, and many visitors to London find that this is the case. I am a Londoner. I want to share a few places with you that offer good food at prices that are very reasonable by London standards. Some of them serve alcohol, which invariably will hike up the final cost of a meal. All of them have been serving customers for many years, but given the economic situation in the UK, one can never be sure for how much longer they will remain in business. Having warned you about this, here is my list, which was up to date when I wrote this in August 2026.

Beigel Bake (159 Brick Lane, London E1 6SB). Open 24 hours a day, this is no ordinary bakery. It does sell delicious breads and pastries, but this is not what makes it special. There is usually a long queue of customers waiting to order generously filled beigels. The fillings include smoked salmon, chopped herring, and freshly made salt beef. The salt beef is some of the best I have ever eaten, and when served with pickled gherkins and strong English mustard, as it is at Beigel Bake, it is superb.  PS: near Beigel Bake, there is another place, Beigel Shop, which I cannot recommend.

Lisboa Patisserie (57 Golborne Road, London W10 5NR). With a mural of Azulejo tiling, this Portuguese establishment serves good coffee at below average prices. It also has a wide range of sweet pastries, as well as the famous ‘pastel de nata’. There are many savoury snacks available including a range of croquettes (meat, prawn, salted cod) and sandwiches (some of the fillings include Portuguese smoked ham, pork escalopes, and chicken escalopes). Everything is reasonably priced in this tiny Portuguese enclave. And facing it across the road, is the Lisboa Delicatessen, where a wonderful range of foods from Portugal can be purchased.

Falafel King (95 Golborne Road, London W10 5NL). Not far from Lisboa Patisserie, this outlet serves delicious wraps containing freshly made falafels.

Cafe Maja (238-246 King Street, London W6 0RF). Located at the western end of POSK, the Polish cultural centre in Hammersmith, this restaurant is one of my favourites. It serves superbly prepared Polish dishes at very acceptable prices. Whether you want a simple meal of beautiful borscht, or a hearty meal including meat, vegetables, and salads, you will not be disappointed. Polish food is often thought to be heavy, but what is served at this place is delicious, filling, but made with a delicate touch. And if you want desserts, there is always a selection of tempting Polish cakes and pastries. This place is well worth a detour.

Sagar (37 Panton Street, Leicester Square, London SW1Y 4EA). This vegetarian restaurant serves very acceptable, reasonably priced South Indian fare in a pleasant, modern dining room. You can order chaats, dosas, idlis, vadas, rasam, thalis, dal, and more. Although much more costly than in India, these authentic tasting dishes are not highly priced by London standards, And as a bonus, this place is in the heart of the West End, near Leicester Square.

Mani’s (12 Perrin’s Ct, London NW3 1QS). This very popular eatery (avoid on weekends as it gets too busy) in Hampstead village caters for a wide range of tastes, and does it well. You can have everything from cooked breakfasts, sandwiches, wraps, and salads to wholesome lunch dishes. I particularly enjoy their Caesar Salad topped with grilled chicken. The menu is too vast for me to describe everything that is available at what I consider to be the best place to eat in Hampstead.

Raavi Kebab (125 Drummond Street, London NW1 2HL). This unpretentious, hardly decorated restaurant is a place for carnivores! Raavi’s serves North Indian dishes. Their biryani is great as is the fried fish (lightly dusted with turmeric and chilli powder before being cooked). At the front of the restaurant there is a charcoal grill. The kebabs (chicken, lamb, and seekh) prepared on the grill are excellent. Other more complicated dishes are available, but those I have mentioned are my favourites.

Caphe House (114 Bermondsey Street, London SE1 3TX). This charming place in trendy Bermondsey Street serves Vietnamese dishes, all of which are tasty, refreshing, and enjoyable. Customers can customise their pho, rice, and noodle dishes, making them vegetarian or otherwise. Banh mi baguettes. Summer rolls, and other Vietnamese food items are also available. To round off the meal, try a Vietnamese coffee. And if you are not worried about calories, go for the egg coffee, which tastes a bit like Italian zabaglione.

Rye Lane Market (48 Rye Lane, London SE15 5BY). This amazing place in South London contains a food court with a difference. As the market’s website (https://ryelanemarket.com/food) explained: “The food hall brings together independent kitchens serving Mexican, Peruvian, Caribbean, Indian, Colombian and other cuisines, plus desserts, juice bars and specialty coffee.” In addition to the Carribean and Latin American food stalls, there are several serving dishes typical of various African cuisines. My favourite stall is the Colombian kitchen, where mouthwatering dishes are prepared by a husband and wife team while you wait. On weekday lunchtimes, most of their quite substantial, tasty dishes are served at a special reduced price. It is well worth making a special expedition to this lovely market and its wonderful food court, which unlike so many other food courts, is completely devoid of branches of fast food chains.

Up to this point, I have been recommending places for people who want to eat good food without spending a fortune. The next few places are slightly more expensive, but given their high quality are good value for money.

Mangal 1 (10 Arcola Street, London E8 2DN). London is full of Turkish restaurants, but Mangal 1 is, in my opinion, outstanding. Their meats (lamb and chicken) grilled on a charcoal filled ocakbasi are top class. I particularly enjoy their lokma (rolled lamb fillet), Adana kebab, yogurtlu Adana, and ciger (liver), apart from the yogurtlu dishes, the others are served with generous amounts of mixed salad.  One of the many starter dishes which I like is Patlican Salata, which contains grilled aubergines and peppers. But be warned that if you indulge on starters. You might find it difficult to finish the main courses, and it is these that are the ‘stars’ of the meal.

Sporting Club De Londres (27 Elkstone Road, London W10 5NT). From the outside, this place looks like a large garage or warehouse. Step inside, and you will feel as if you have been transported from London to Madeira. But enter only if you have a good appetite because the superbly cooked Portuguese dishes served here are very generous. Everything is good on the menu, from seafood to meat dishes. It is not ultra cheap, but it is very good value, and great fun eating at this haunt of London’s Portuguese community.

Jia (1 Harrington Road, South Kensington, London SW7 3ES). Conveniently close to the South Kensington museums, this Chinese restaurant serves Sichuan dishes. It is popular with Chinese students studying nearby at Imperial College, because the food served at Jia is aimed at the Chinese customers rather than the many tourists who visit the area. For a real treat, order one of the hotpots, which contain enough food for two. Jia is delightfully different from many other (mainly Cantonese) Chinese restaurants in London.

Four Seasons (12 Gerrard Street, W1D 5PR). Located in London’s Chinatown, this is one of many Cantonese restaurants in the area, but one where I have always eaten well. This restaurant is one of several members of a group of Four Seasons restaurants. All of them are noted for the excellence of their roast duck. Although there are many dishes to choose from, my favourite is House Special Fried Noodles. Every time I have ordered it, it has arrived with a different array of seafood and meats. Many other dishes on the menu are worth ordering.

Ciao Bella (86-90 Lamb’s Conduit Street, London WC1N 3LZ). Londo is flooded with restaurants claiming to serve Italian food. Some do it badly, and a minority do it well. Only recently, I ate at Ciao Bella near Russell Square, and the food was really good. Both the pasta and meat dishes would have been quite acceptable had they been served in a trattoria in Italy frequented by locals who know their food. Both my wife and I have spent much time in Italy, and can distinguish between Italian food aimed at foreigners and that which has been prepared for discerning Italian diners. What we ate at Ciao Bella was not only up to the mark, but also not outrageously priced.

Hafez (5 Hereford Road, London W2 4AB). This is a place to see as well as to dine at. This Persian restaurant has the most eccentric interior décor of any restaurant I know. The food served from its extensive menu is quite satisfactory, but not as amazing as the decoration of the room in which you consume it.

Asakusa (265 Eversholt Street, London NW1 1BA). Not far from the popular Camden Market, this quaint Japanese restaurant serves excellent freshly prepared food. Whereas there are many chains serving Japanese food (e.g., Itsu and Wasabi) at supposedly budget prices, they do not provide great quality for the prices they charge. In contrast, Asakusa does give you great quality, and therefore good value for money.

The Champion (1 Wellington Terrace, London W2 4LW). I have travelled all over England in search of a good traditional Sunday roast lunch, and have usually been disappointed. The Champion pub, which is not far from where I live, serves a superb Sunday lunch. The deal is that one orders a platter to be shared by two (hungry) people. This platter contains three expertly roasted, tasty chunks of meat (e.g., lamb, beef, chicken, or pork). The meat is accompanied by a variety of vegetables and the traditional Yorkshire Puddings. And this superb offering is no more costly than the many mediocre Sunday roasts I have eaten elsewhere. Although the Sunday roasts are wonderful at The Champion, I cannot recommend other things I have eaten there.

So, there you have it. You can follow my suggestions or not. I may have omitted many other great places, but those above are ones I know. Once again, I should emphasise that things can change, but I hope that those I have written about neither disappear nor change for the worse.