Soho will happily take your money. Eighteen quid cocktails, thirty quid mains, a queue for anything with a hashtag attached to it. But wander two streets off the main drag and the picture changes fast. This is one of the densest concentrations of affordable, good food in London, mostly hiding behind unassuming shopfronts that don’t need a queue to prove themselves.
By cheap, we mean a proper meal for under £15 a head in most cases, often a fair bit less. Every spot below is a short walk from the next, which is the whole point of doing Soho on its own rather than lumping it in with the rest of London.
ICCO Pizza Soho – Pizza from £3.95
Start here. ICCO has been turning out pizza on Greek Street since 1999, and the pricing has barely moved with the times. A whole Margherita is £6.50. Pepperoni is £7.50. Every base ferments for 24 to 48 hours before it sees the oven, which is more care than plenty of places charging double bother with. The whole menu is halal, there’s no service charge, and on weekends it runs until 3am, making it one of the few sit-down kitchens in Soho still serving proper food that late.
Heading to a show first? Ask about the pre-theatre deal: any pizza plus a soft drink for £10 with a valid ticket.
Address: 23-24 Greek Street, W1D 4DZ.
Wowshee Egyptian Falafel Bar – Large mezza box £7.95
A stall in Berwick Street Market with a queue that tells you everything before you’ve ordered. The falafel is fried to order, made from fava beans rather than the usual chickpeas, and stuffed into a pitta or box alongside fried aubergine, halloumi, pickles and a proper hit of tahini and chilli sauce. It won an international falafel award in 2019 and hasn’t coasted on it since. It’s grab-and-go only, so eat it on a Berwick Street bench rather than expecting somewhere to sit, and both cash and card work.
Address: Berwick Street, W1F 8ST.
Bao – Steamed buns from around £4 each
The restaurant that turned a Netil Market stall into a Soho institution, and the queue outside most lunchtimes hasn’t really let up since it opened. The Classic, braised pork belly with peanut powder and fermented greens tucked into a pillowy steamed bun, is still the one to get, though the fried chicken version has its fans too. Two or three buns and a side of the fried Brussels sprouts is enough for a full meal, and you’ll still have change from £15. Address: 53 Lexington Street, W1F 9AS.
Beijing Dumpling – Xiao long bao (8) from £6.50
Chinatown’s dumpling specialist, and worth the short walk from the rest of this list. You can watch the whole operation through the front window on Lisle Street: dough rolled, filled, pleated and steamed within feet of where you’ll eat it. The soup dumplings are the reason for the queue, but the pan-fried pork and chive version is just as good and considerably less likely to burst down your chin. Pair a plate with the £5 cucumber salad and you’re still under a tenner.
Address: 23 Lisle Street, WC2H 7BA.
Wong Kei – Wonton soup £7.50
Wong Kei doesn’t do atmosphere. It does fast, wallet-friendly, filling Cantonese food across several floors, and it’s been a Chinatown fixture for decades on the strength of that alone. The wonton soup is the move: a deep bowl of clean, savoury broth stuffed with pork and prawn wontons, livened up with the table-top chilli oil. It’s cash only, and if you’re on your own, expect to share a table. Neither of those things are a reason to skip it.
Address: 41-43 Wardour Street, W1D 6PY.
Bibimbap Soho – Bibimbap bowls under £10
A small, easy-to-miss Korean spot that does exactly one thing well: a stone bowl of rice, vegetables and your choice of protein, arriving still sizzling loud enough to turn heads at the next table, topped with a fried egg and a squeeze of gochujang. The chicken and beef bulgogi versions are the safe bets, but the tofu one holds its own if you’re eating meat-free. Add a Korean beer for a few pounds more and you’re still well inside budget.
Address: 11 Greek Street, W1D 4DJ.
Mildreds – Small plates from £4.50
London’s original plant-based restaurant, running since 1988 and still one of the better vegan meals in the city rather than just a compromise for people who don’t eat meat. The small plates are where the value is: chipotle chick’n tinga tacos, coconut corn ribs, a few of those alongside rice or fries gets you a proper meal without touching the pricier mains. Address: 45 Lexington Street, W1F 9AN.
Supernova – Cheeseburger £9, fries £3
A stripped-back smash burger counter that went viral for good reason and hasn’t slowed down since. Two burgers on the menu, both smashed thin with crisp, lacy edges, served in a potato bun with pickles and a tangy house sauce. There’s nowhere to sit and the menu runs to four items total, but a burger and fries for £12 is proper value for Soho, and the queue moves quicker than the size of it suggests.
Address: 25 Peter Street, W1F 0AH.
Flat Iron – Steak £15
The one proper splurge on this list, and still hard to beat for what it is. One dish, a flat iron steak, served with a side of your choosing: beef dripping chips, creamed spinach, or a roast aubergine main if you’re skipping meat entirely. It’s walk-in only, so expect a short wait, but a sit-down steak dinner in the middle of Soho for £15 is a different kind of value to everything else on this list, and worth the one splurge if you’ve got a few extra pounds in the budget.
Address: 17 Beak Street, W1F 9RW.
Nine spots, one postcode, all of it proof that Soho doesn’t have to empty your wallet if you know where to walk.
