The Best Places in London to Eat Cheap

1. Brixton Village (Atlantic Road, SW9)

Brixton Village @MattfromLondon

Hidden away in an old shopping arcade, Brixton Village is a treasure trove of tiny cheap restaurants. Open late (until 10pm so far, but watch this space) on Friday and Saturday nights, it has an amazing variety of cuisine and a bustling, community atmosphere that’s absent in the more touristy areas of London.

And, more importantly in this expensive city, all the menus are very reasonably priced - you can easily eat for less than £10 per person. To help cut costs further, many of these cheap restaurants are BYOB so you can stock up on beer or wine from the Sainsbury's near the tube station and avoid the usual expensive mark-ups.

Elephant (Unit 55) is a fantastic Pakistani café serving traditional thali platter for just £6.95 that'll leave you full and satisfied. For a lighter choice, Casa Sibilla has fantastic anti pasti plates, which you can wash down with their excellent prosecco.

2. Greenwich Market

Greenwich Market food stall @Visit Greenwich

Right near the Olympic site, Greenwich Market is the ideal place to eat on a budget between events. This little known area of South East London has a good selection of pubs and restaurants where you can dine for less than £10. Try Hola Paella (7 - 7A) for some delicious Spanish paella from just £4.

Every day, however, the array of places to eat widens as different street food style stalls pop up to offer global cuisine on a budget. Find Teriyaki-ya for curries (£5) or Pie in the Skyz for homebaked, old fashioned British pies - the perfect lunch to complement the Olympics! Starting from £4.50, the pies are a bargain and you can even get gravy on the side in an ingenious paper bag that doesn't leak.

3. Camden Lock

Peruvian Food in Camden Market@Dave Catchpole

On the weekend, Camden is flooded with visitors and shoppers browsing the eclectic stalls. Although many of the things for sale can be over priced, the food stalls remain great value and excellent place to eat cheaply in London. The West Yard is packed with exotic cuisine stalls from all over the world, from Polish sausages to Caribbean jerk chicken to chocolate brownies.

The portions are huge and the prices rock bottom outside of a typical restaurant setting. You can perch at one of the picnic tables in the West Yard whilst you eat or on the Lock walls by the canal, or simply people watch and soak up the atmosphere.

My personal favourite cheap place to eat is 'Real Good Argentine Food', where you can get an Argentine steak sandwich - a huge, mouthwatering piece of beef with bell peppers on crusty bread - for around £5.