10 Best Value Restaurants in London: Eat Well on Your City Break

London is one of the world's most exciting travel destinations, but it also has a reputation for being one of the most expensive. When you are planning a City Break in London, it is easy to let your budget get swallowed up by overpriced tourist traps and mediocre sandwiches.

Eating your way through London, one restaurant at a time.

But here is the secret that savvy locals know: London’s food scene is incredibly diverse, and if you know where to look, you can find world-class dining that is surprisingly affordable. Saving money on food doesn’t mean sacrificing quality; it just means you have more budget left over for sightseeing.

Travel Tip: If you are still planning your itinerary and need help with accommodation or daily schedules, make sure to read our complete 3-Day City Break London Guide before you fly.

From handmade pasta to fiery Sri Lankan feasts, here is our curated list of the 10 best value-for-money restaurants to visit during your London trip.

1. Padella (Borough Market & Shoreditch)

Cuisine: Italian Pasta

If you are willing to queue, Padella offers perhaps the best value plate of food in the entire city. Located right next to the famous Borough Market, they serve fresh, hand-rolled pasta with exquisite sauces. It is the perfect pit-stop during a busy day of exploring the South Bank.

• Why it’s great value: You can get a plate of incredible cacio e pepe or their famous Dexter beef shin ragu for around £10-£13. The quality rivals restaurants charging triple that price.

• City Break Tip: The queues at Borough Market are legendary. Go for an early lunch (11:45 AM) to beat the crowd, or visit their Shoreditch branch which uses a virtual queue app.

2. Flat Iron (Soho, Covent Garden & Various)

Cuisine: Steak

Finding a good, affordable steak in central London used to be impossible until Flat Iron arrived. Their mission is simple: make great steak accessible. They generally serve one cut—the "flat iron" (feather blade)—which is flavourful and tender.

• Why it’s great value: Their signature steak is usually priced around £14. Even with sides (get the dripping chips), it remains an incredibly affordable steak dinner in the heart of the West End.

• City Break Tip: Don’t skip the complimentary salted caramel ice cream given to you on leaving—it’s the perfect sweet finish to your evening.

3. Dishoom (King's Cross, Kensington & Various)

Cuisine: Bombay Café / Indian

Dishoom is practically a London institution. Styled after the old Irani cafés of Bombay, the atmosphere is electric and the service is top-tier. It feels luxurious without the luxury price tag, making it a must-visit on any London city break.

• Why it’s great value: While the cocktails are pricey, the food is very reasonable. A hearty bowl of their famous House Black Daal and fresh naan is a filling, affordable feast.

• City Break Tip: Go for breakfast. Their Bacon Naan Roll is iconic, cheaper than their dinner menu, and is the best fuel for a day of walking.

4. Brasserie Zédel (Piccadilly Circus)

Cuisine: Classic French

Walking into Brasserie Zédel feels like stepping onto a film set of 1920s Paris. It is a vast, subterranean, gilded dining hall right in the centre of London. It looks impossibly expensive, yet it is famously affordable.

• Why it’s great value: They are famous for their ‘Prix Fixe’ menu. You can usually get two courses (like steak haché and frites) for under £15, or three courses for under £20.

• City Break Tip: This is the perfect spot for a pre-theatre dinner if you are seeing a West End show nearby.

5. Roti King (Euston & Battersea)

Cuisine: Malaysian / Singaporean

The original Euston location is a tiny basement room that always has a queue snaking up the street. Roti King serves authentic, punchy Malaysian comfort food that tastes exactly as it should.

• Why it’s great value: It’s all about the Roti Canai—two pieces of fluffy, buttery, freshly slapped roti served with a bowl of rich curry for around £8.50. It is filling, delicious, and a total bargain.

• City Break Tip: If you are arriving in London via Euston Station, this is the best meal you can find within walking distance.

6. Pizza Pilgrims (Soho, Victoria & Various)

Cuisine: Neapolitan Pizza

Sometimes on a city break, you just need a really good pizza. Pizza Pilgrims started in a van and now have sites all over London, churning out authentic Neapolitan-style pizzas with blistered, soft crusts.

• Why it’s great value: Most of their classic pizzas sit around the £11-£14 mark. It’s reliable, quick, and infinitely better than the high-street chains.

• City Break Tip: Their simple Marinara or Margherita pizzas are often the best things on the menu and the cheapest options.

7. Hoppers (Soho, Marylebone, King's Cross)

Cuisine: Sri Lankan & South Indian

Hoppers focuses on the intense, vibrant flavours of Sri Lanka. The restaurant is named after the bowl-shaped fermented rice and coconut milk pancakes that are the centrepiece of the meal.

• Why it’s great value: It’s designed for sharing. A hopper, a couple of karis (curries), and some short eats (snacks) divided between friends provides a high-end culinary experience for a mid-range price.

• City Break Tip: The ‘Taste of Hoppers’ set menus are excellent value ways to try their greatest hits without over-ordering.

8. Bao (Soho, Fitzrovia & Borough)

Cuisine: Taiwanese

Bao serves fluffy, cloud-like steamed buns filled with various delicious ingredients. The aesthetic is minimalist and clean, and the flavours are precise.

• Why it’s great value: A single Bao bun costs around £6. While you might need two or three for a full meal, the quality of ingredients (like their classic braised pork with peanut powder) is superb for the price point.

• City Break Tip: The Classic Pork Bao is essential dining. Add a side of Taiwanese fried chicken to bulk up the meal if you are particularly hungry.

9. My Old Place (Spitalfields)

Cuisine: Szechuan Chinese

Located near Liverpool Street, this restaurant doesn't look like much from the outside, but inside it is packed with locals in the know. It specializes in authentic, fiery Szechuan cuisine.

• Why it’s great value: The portions here are absolutely enormous. Main dishes are around £12-£16, but one dish can easily feed two people.

• City Break Tip: Order the Green beans with minced pork and chilli—it's a massive portion and incredibly addictive.

10. Silk Road (Camberwell)

Cuisine: Xinjiang / North-West Chinese

It’s a little further out of the centre, but Silk Road is a pilgrimage site for London food lovers. They serve the unique, cumin-heavy cuisine of the Xinjiang region of China.

• Why it’s great value: The flavours are bold and the prices feel like they haven't changed in a decade. Their famous "Big Plate Chicken" (an enormous stew of chicken, potatoes and hand-pulled noodles) is a mountain of food for a very low price.

• City Break Tip: You must order the lamb skewers. They are heavily spiced, incredibly cheap, and delicious.

  
  

Ready to book your trip? Don't forget to check out our main City Break London Guide for the best itineraries, hotels, and transport tips.