If you’re searching the city centre for “cheap eats” here’s 15 spots to give a try
The new deli and cafe is serving up traditional Vietnamese coffee and Banh Mi(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
We all know that eating out in our favourite restaurants is something of a luxury. While you may not be dining out in Michelin-starred eateries or fine-dining establishments every day, even dropping by your local neighbourhood bistro at the weekend can set you back.
The cost of eating our has risen sharply in recent years, even as hospitality businesses do their best to not pass on the costs. And despite many of them offering January deals or mid-week deals, this small luxury can add up especially if you’re looking for something quick to eat in town or on a lunchbreak.
But in order to support our local restaurants, cafes, bars and pubs we’re sharing some of the city centre spots where you can get a decent meal that won’t break the bank. We’ve sent the limit as £15, but many fall under a tenner and all of them will leave you feeling genuinely satisfied.
The list isn’t exhaustive, there’s many more to discover across Greater Manchester but our guide serves as a small bite of inspiration for those looking for options in the city centre. As ever, if you have any suggestions you would like to add to the list, please leave us a comment below.
Pancho’s Burritos and Arndale Market
Pancho’s Burritos at the Arndale Food Market(Image: Manchester Evening News)
The award-winning Mexican street stall can be found with Manchester’s Arndale food market, where owner Enrique Martinez serves up some of the very best burritos, tacos, nachos and tostadas. Freshly made every day, meats are slow cooked, while toppings and sauces and dips are made using authentic recipes passed down through generations.
A burrito bowl will set you back £10.50, a standard burrito is £9.50 and a meal deal with a large burrito and drink is £12.50. Nachos with melted cheese, salsa, guacamole, jalapenos, sour cream, black beans, peppers and onions are a tenner.
The Market Hall here is also home to absolute gems, where you’re guaranteed to get a decent sized portion for under a tenner. There’s Hansford’s open for early morning breakfast, Rack for all your sandwich needs and Tokyo Tokyo for Japanese street food at its finest.
49 High St, Manchester M4 3AH
Rads
Rad’s has been serving up Caribbean food in Ancoats for over a decade (Image: )
This hidden food gem is tucked away in the heart of Ancoats and serves up delightful Caribbean cuisine. Expect hearty portions of jerk chicken, stewed mutton, curry chicken, and fish, or the much raved about rice and peas – often described as the star of the show. Sides of boiled white rice, cabbage and carrots, and fried dumplings go down a treat too, as does the option for chips and cheese or chips with gravy.
Their lunchtime special is just £8.50 with an array of choices such as jerk chicken and mutton, which means you can fill up without spending too much money. The portions are massive too, leaving you full and satisfied for the whole day.
62 Jersey St, Ancoats, Manchester M4 6JW
This & That
This & That, Soap Street(Image: Matt Ratcliffe)
Manchester’s Northern Quarter is famous for its wide range of dining spots, and those serving up ‘rice and three’ – a generous portion of rice accompanied by no less than three curries on the side – are some of the the district’s most treasured. Probably the first place you’ll be directed if you after your fix though is This & That, a family run curry house tucked away on Soap Street.
The vegetarian option here will set you back £6, while rice with a one meat and two veggie curries is 50p more. Rice with two meat options and one veggie is £7 and if you’re all about the meat, rice and three meats is £8.
3 Soap St, Manchester M4 1EW
Northern Soul
A Northern Soul grilled cheese sandwich(Image: Manchester Evening News)
Established in 2014, this is a Tib Street staple. Home of indulgent, comforting and extremely cheesy lunchtime options, here you can try everything from the Mac Attack (£12), their famous homemade Mac ‘n’ Cheese sandwich, to their classic grilled cheese (£8.50) served on golden sourdough bread, and French Dip (£14.50) with beef, slowly cooked for six hours until it falls apart, served up with swiss cheese, caramelised onions and dipping gravy.
20-21, Smithfield Buildings, 44 Tib St, Manchester M4 1LA
Go Falafel
Go Falafel wraps(Image: Go Falafel)
On your way up to Piccadilly Station, tucked just away on Newton Street is Go Falafel with some of the city’s best falafel, salads, and lush hummus. Perfect for those on-the-go lunches, they also have a range of freshly squeezed juices and smoothies so you can feel a bit virtuous.
On UberEats right now, the large falafel wrap is £8.50, medium is £7.50, and the lunch box is £10.95. A juice starts from £5 and ranges from mango, to pear, pineapple and carrot.
3 Newton St, Manchester M1 1HW
Rudy’s
Rudy’s dough is made fresh daily by their in-house pizzaioli, using Caputo ‘00’ flour which takes over 24 hours to be lovingly made(Image: Supplied)
It all started in Ancoats for this humble neighbourhood pizzeria concept. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know the brand has brown massively to over 30 UK locations. There’s several outposts across Greater Manchester too but all are still guided by the traditions and artistry of pizza from Naples – the birthplace of pizza.
Pared back Pizzas with sweet San Marzano, buffalo mozzarella are a got-to, but there’s so mighty fine specials too – and even after all these years, still very reasonably priced. As special like the Porchetta comes under just under budget at £14.90, while the OG Margherita is £9.90 and Marina £8.50.
9 Cotton St, Ancoats, Manchester M4 5BF
Bundobust
The restaurant is famed for its Gujarati street food and its selection of craft beers(Image: Publicity Picture)
When Bundobust decided to expand from its hometown of Leeds to Manchester several years ago, lovers of the Indian street food spot rejoiced. The menu is completely vegetarian – and in many cases vegan too – and for less than a tenner you can find staples like their okra fries (£6.50), Bundo Chaat (£6.75) and Paneer Tikka (£8.50).
There take on a buttie – aka the Vada Pav – of deep-fried mashed potato ball in a bun with red and green chutneys if just £8 and a solid choice along with one of their many craft beers, which included their selection of award-winning beers fresh from the brewery.
61 Piccadilly, Manchester M1 2AG
Nell’s
Nell’s have several sites across Greater Manchester(Image: Supplied)
Taking the corner slot at the Kampus neighbourhood overlooking Canal Street, Nell’s – the popular pizza concept from the founders of Common – specialises in 22-inch New York style pizzas. They also sell them by the slice making it a very tempting option after a couple of pints.
Frankly the pizzas are huge, and you can definitely share, but if you’re watching the pennies, the veggie and vegan options are all pretty much under £15. By the slice, you’re looking at £4.75 for double down pepperoni, around £3.75 for the OG Cheese and £3.25 for Marina, while Magic Number comes in at £4.25
Bunny Jackson’s
Honestly, it’s almost inconceivable how cheap the wings are here. At Bunny Jackson’s and their other restaurants in town including Junior Jackson’s and Bunny Karaoke, you can get wings starting from 20p for the sauce-free option. The thing is, there known for their hot wings – so it would be rude not to.
If you’re spicing up, get six Nashville hot wings for £5.50, or if you’re really out to prove something to you mates, go for Hotter than the Sun at £1 each. Beyond the wings, there’s cheeseburgers for £11, chicken and waffles for £10.50 and mac and cheese for £4.50.
1 Jack Rosenthal St, Manchester M15 4RA
Rustica
The extremely popular Milano sandwich at Rustica(Image: )
This Manchester institution on Hilton Street has been slinging out sarnies for over 25 years now. On any given day there are queues wrapping around the corner as everyone from workmen in hi-vis to office folk patiently wait for their breakfast barm or lunchtime sandwich to be called out.
A full English comprising two sausages, two bacon, egg, beans, tomatoes, mushrooms and toast is well under a tenner, while extras are around £1. The sandwiches meanwhile are priced under a fiver and span everything from the Milano and tuna melt to meatball ciabattas.
1 Hilton St, Manchester M4 1LP
Wow Banh Mi
Wow Banh Mi offer five types of baguette including the grilled pork skewers and crispy pork belly as well as the signature Banh Mi(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
Over on Oldham Road as you come into town past Wing Yip and the Royal Mail Sorting Office you’ll find what many have started to call ‘Little Vietnam’, thanks to the streets rich tapestry of Vietnamese and Southeast Asian businesses. Towards the north end of the parade of shops sits Wow Banh Mi, which as you might have guessed specialises in the lunchtime staple Banh Mi – they even have their own dedicated sandwich station.
Opened in 2024, the family run joint serves up a hotchpotch of flavours and influences, spanning traditional Vietnamese broths and baguettes, Taiwanese bubble tea, German Bratwurst and American corndogs. Their Banh Mi Thit Bo Nuong with chargrilled beef balls, three peppercorn sauce dressing, caramelised onion chutney, cucumbers and coriander and daikon is a beast – in a good way – and comes in at £8.40. Their corn dogs start from £4.60 while their Pho Bo Beef Pho comes in at £13.90.
132 Oldham Rd, Ancoats, Manchester M4 6BG
TRF Cafe
TRF can be found on the third floor of Afflecks (Image: Manchester Evening News)
Tucked away on the third floor of Afflecks in the Northern Quarter you’ll find Third Floor Rising, a humble cafe serving up all the classics, from fry-ups and breakfast rolls, BLTs, teas, coffees and everything required fuel your trip around this shopping emporium. There’s also a great list of owner Tommy’s homemade pies, paninis, toasties and filled rolls as well as owner Sarah’s home made tray bakes and cakes. Many of the dishes are under a tenner and their homemade soup with cheese on toast is a real winner in the colder months.
52 Church St, Manchester M4 1PW
Gerry’s Chinese Pancake House
Gerry’s at the top of Market Street(Image: ABNM Photography)
This beloved street food van is positioned at the meeting point between Piccadilly Gardens and Market Street and originally started life as a ice cream van before it was converted to sell authentic Chinese savoury crepes known as Jian Bing filled with everything from spicy cumin chicken and salt and pepper pork to braised duck. Starting at around the £5 and going up to around £8, you can also grab such as pork floss, crab sticks and luncheon meat for around a quid.
Just across the way you’ll also find the popular Street Food Market at Piccadilly Gardens bringing fresh food from some of the region’s best street food vendors. Every Wednesday to Saturday in Piccadilly Gardens the street food market stalls offer delicious food from around the globe with dishes ranging from halloumi fries and smash burgers to dim sum and chow mein noodles, as well as Caribbean staples from Rita’s Reign and BBQ lamb kofta and chicken shawarma from Nazar Grill.
128 Market St, Manchester M1 1WA
Mongrel MCR
Owners of Mongrel said their ‘oven will be turning the Neapolitan pizzas we’re known for'(Image: Mongrel)
This new taproom, coffee shop and pizzeria took over the former Street Urchin spot at the end of 2025. Situated on Great Ancoats Street, Mongrel focuses on locally-roasted coffee, freshly-baked pastries, and Neapolitan pizzas, and comes from the team behind popular Stockport pizza pop-up, Crust.
It’s creations include the White Nduja, featuring a white base with nduja and hot honey, and a Winter Warmer featuring Vension salami, brie, cranberry chutney and chopped rosemary. There’s also classics like the Marinara, Marg, Pep, and a Goat pizza featuring mozzarella, goat’s cheese, roasted peppers and hot honey. Online, pizza prices start from £7 and go up to £13.
72 Great Ancoats St, Manchester M4 5BG
Viet Deli
The cafe specialises in different types of Vietnamese coffee(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
This family run deli opened in summer 2025 and is transporting hungry Mancunians to the busy and busting streets of Hanoi with its authentic Banh Mi – French baguette stuffed with pate, pickled vegetables, coriander, mayonnaise and various meats of tofu – and Vietnamese coffee.
Four Banh Mi options are available including crispy tofu (£6.79), lemongrass chicken (£7.99), Char Sui (£7.99), and Classic (£8.29), the latter being Duc Bao’s favourite with its savoury pork filling and creamy, rich pate. Hanoians replace milk in their coffee with beaten egg yolk and sugar, or condensed mill, resulting in the famed egg coffee – an airy, creamy and meringue-like concoction – a must-try if you’re venturing to Viet Deli.
22 Blackfriars St, Manchester M3 5BQ