Food & Drink

10 lunch spots in Manchester where you can get a meal for less than £10

Dolly Busby - 19th November 2021

Your measly meal deal is about to get a serious upgrade.

Delicious and affordable lunches are Manchester’s thing and there are loads of venues to choose from right across the city centre.

Going out for lunch doesn’t have to be a special treat anymore, not when there are so many purse-friendly restaurants.

Keep reading to discover the finest spots in Manchester that are about to set the lunchtime standard.

Say goodbye to scanning the menu for the cheapest option because we’ve got you covered.

All the restaurants below offer proper scran for under £10, some are less than a meal-deal.

Go on, tuck in.

Salt & Pepper

The Arndale

One of Manchester’s most popular street food stalls which makes treating yourself affordable.

Awarded Best Newcomer at the Deliveroo’s Restaurant Awards, Salt & Pepper serves class scran centring around the ever-popular Chinese dish of salt and pepper.

Prawns, beef, salt and pepper tofu or chicken boxes are £7.50 served up generously with a side of chips.

Each option oozes with sticky goodness – try their Asian Tacos stuffed with beef, fresh salad, pickled slaw, toasted sesame, crispy shallots smacked between a soft toasted flatbread.

The local business is located inside the Arndale food market, as well as in the kitchens at Black Dog in the Northern Quarter.

Bundobust

Piccadilly Gardens

The best Indian street food in Manchester – hands down.

Vegan, veggie and sure to warm you from the inside out – Bundobust is one of Manchester’s prize restaurants.

There’s an express lunch menu of two dishes for £8.50, including the classic Bundo Chaat, a street snack of broken samosa pastry and puffed rice, peas, onion, pomegranate, and tomato in tamarind chutney.

The tarka dhal is one of the most warming, filling and hearty pots of food you’ll find outside your nan’s kitchen.

Found on the edge of Piccadilly Gardens, the interiors are simple but cool – a perfect place to impress for less on a first date.

Northern Soul

Tib Street, Northern Quarter

‘It ain’t easy being cheesy…’

It’s simple, it’s quick and you guessed it – it’s cheese mania.

Northern Soul’s cheesy delights range from brie, feta, cheddar, blue cheese – they do it all and stick it in a grilled sandwich.

Extra sandwich fillers include pulled port, jalapenos, onion chutney with sriracha glazed fries on the side – the best bit is, they’re all under £10.

Special menu-tion goes the ‘Pig on a Lead’ their 9-hour BBQ pulled pork mac and cheese grilled sandwich – it’s a mouthful.

Cheese in Northern Soul’s game and they’re undeniably killing it.

Katsouris Deli

Deansgate

It’s time to ditch the meal-deal.

Put the BLT back in the fridge and head down to Katsouris Deli where freshly prepared sandwiches range between £4 and £7.

Toasted ciabatta sandwiches come at half or full. Trust us, the half ones are not small.

Breakfast balms come in at £5 where an Aphrodite Special means grilled halloumi, tomato and smoked ham – start off the day the continental way.

The deli boasts a sandwich menu of Mexican spicy chicken, Lamb Siciliana, Zorba the Greek and Supreme – don’t know what they are?

Go down and grab one.

This n’ That

Soap St, Northern Quarter

Manchester’s best curry house is tucked down a little side street in the Northern Quarter.

Delicious and very affordable, This n’ That will become everyone’s new favourite lunch place – if it isn’t already.

All the food is homemade and prepared using fresh whole spices with curry options changing daily.

Their menu works as follows – rice and three veg is £4.50, rice with one meat and two veg is £5 and rice with two meat and one veg is £6.

A fresh, homemade, bursting with flavour, steaming pot of curry almost spilling over – that could be your lunch every day.

Head to the Northern Quarter armed with a map – its location down an alley full of bins might throw you off, but once you find it, you’ll never forget it.

Wolf at the Door

Thomas Street, Northern Quarter

The best quid you’ll ever spend in Manchester – these bitesize bao buns are only £1.

Top scran just got very affordable.

The tiny tacos and bitesize buns surprisingly keep the wolf firmly at the door, but if you need more, we recommend their loaded fries.

Loaded with pizza toppings, melted vegan cheddar and siracha mayo or garlic and herb butter the fries are also filling and well within price range.

Be warned they have an enticing cocktail menu – get sucked in and lunch will become the next day.

Arndale Market

The Arndale

Can’t decide on lunch?

The Arndale food market will satisfy any craving you throw at it, no matter how niche.

In recent years the market has welcomed some of Manchester’s most exciting and talented chefs – so quality is a given.

Our list promises affordability to and the Arndale food market deserves a place on this list.

Stalls including Wholesome Junkies (the vegan equivalent of dirty burger), Viet Shack, Piazza (pasta with burrata on top), Market Point and many more are class lunch spots and won’t put you out of pocket.

Whether it’s mid-shop, mid-hangover or just mid-day the Arndale market is sure to sort you out.

Banh Mi Co Ba

Oxford Road

Bao bun sandwiches, Vietnamese baguette sandwiches, traditional rice dishes and vermicelli salads – your mouth watering yet?

Spring rolls, Pho broths stewing with tender steak briskets, marinated grilled pork steak on rice – still not watering?

How about if we told you all the above, plus everything else on Banh Mi Co Ba’s menu is under £10.

It’s hard not to darken their doors every lunch time – I mean how could you resist?

See you there.

Bunny Jackson’s

Jack Rosenthal Street

Finger licking chicken wings for 20 to 50 pence – a Bunny bargain.

The First Street restaurant is home to the ultimate hot wing challenge, just ask your server and see if you can handle the heat.

For those who can’t, not to worry a glass of milk is helpfully placed on the menu.

The menu boasts some juicy burgers and bar snacks such as Jalapeno Poppers – we were intrigued to – they’re crispy coated, fried jalapenos stuffed with cream cheese.

Get down and dirty with these unbeatable prices but wash your hands before you return to the office.

Go Falafel

Deansgate, Piccadilly, Rusholme

The falafel lover’s failsafe when it comes to a decently priced wrap.

We love the build-your-own aspect to this popular lunch spot and who can’t appreciate a customised falafel wrap.

Or if falafel doesn’t float your boat, grab a vine leaf or some tabouleh and top it off with a fresh juice or smoothie.

Health is wealth and it comes cheap at Go Falafel.