London is a pricey place to live at the best of times. So if you’re looking for ways to tick off your restaurant hit list in a way that won’t break your budget, you’ve come to the right place.
Across Michelin-starred restaurants, high-end pubs and hyped new spots, you’ll find set lunch menus, pre-theatre menus, late-night dining offers, experimental scratch nights and more. We’ve compiled some of our favourites, including an always-changing scratch menu at Spring, a £10 late-night hot dog at Jeremy King’s The Park, and a £25 set menu in Belgravia that could see you feasting on house-made pappardelle with slow-cooked game ragu.
£18 late-night pot luck rice at Poon’s, The Strand
In her Grade I-listed, pink-hued restaurant at Somerset House, Amy Poon serves playful twists on Cantonese home cooking, including her signature wontons and wind-dried meats. And after 9pm, you can enjoy “pot luck rice” for just £18, comprising surplus ingredients from the restaurant.
poonslondon.com
£5 Negroni at Brutto, Farringdon
Brutto’s £5 Negroni remains one of the capital’s beautiful anomalies. The Bib Gourmand-recognised Italian restaurant has kept its offer the same for several years now, pouring with the strength and balance of drinks at least triple the price. Brutto’s Florentine salty fried dough balls with a side of stracchino cheese make a natural companion in completing the ritual of aperitivo.
@bru.tto
£40 three-course dinner at Spring Restaurant, The Strand
Eleanor Henson’s team at Spring in Somerset House designs a weekly “scratch” menu around the season’s best produce, repurposing surplus ingredients in line with the restaurant’s zero-waste ethos. Between Tuesday and Saturday from 5.30pm to 6.15pm at £40, the menu varies with what’s at its freshest, giving diners a sense of spontaneity rarely found at this level.
springrestaurant.co.uk
£6 Guinness Bread & Preserves at Cafe Cecilia, Hackney
Here at this canal-side hotspot in Hackney, chef Max Rocha (ex St John and River Cafe) turns out elevated Irish-inflected dishes nightly. On the weekends from 9am to 10.45am, the restaurant also serves breakfast, including a spread of dark and deeply satisfying Guinness bread with rich Irish butter and an array of house-made preserves.
cafececilia.com
£10 bifana at Tollington’s, Finsbury Park
Masterminded by chef Ed McIlroy (The Plimsoll), Tollington’s applies an Iberian slant to the romance of a traditional chippie. The bifana – slow-marinated pork loin in a crusty papo seco (Portuguese bread roll) – comes in at £10, and remains a reliable choice on the menu.
@tollingtons.fishbar
£10 late-night hot dog at The Park, Queensway
Hospitality doyen Jeremy King opened The Park just off Kensington Gardens in 2024. Here at his all-day diner, replete with mid-century American flair, diners can enjoy a luxe hot dog for just over £10 if they dine after 9.15pm. In fact, the entire menu is reduced by 25 per cent after 9.15pm, which means the caramelised banana split comes down to around £9.
theparkrestaurant.com
£25 three-course lunch at Romano's, Central London
There are many reasons to be excited about the grand re-opening of Simpson’s on the Strand, the latest project from Jeremy King. Romano’s – the 135-cover first floor dining room – is one of them. From March 30, it will offer two courses at £21 or three at £24.75, with dishes including wild mushroom vol-au-vent, grilled Cumberland sausage with butter beans, and a vanilla custard tart to finish.
simpsonsinthestrand.co.uk/romanos
£18 Martini and savoury bites at Wiltons, St. James
You wouldn’t instantly associate dining deals with St James’s historic dining room, which has been serving British seafood and game since 1742. However, its new £18 Martini and savouries menu offers the choice of four Martinis with a selection of three mini savouries, including angles on horseback, Welsh rarebit tart, and potted shrimp on toast. Seeing a show later? The pre-theatre menu offers two or three courses for £47.95 or £57.95 if you’re dining at 5.30pm.
wiltons.co.uk
£21 hearty Irish feed at The Cow, Notting Hill
Seminal gastropub The Cow has been a destination for Guinness, oysters and refined, Irish-influenced pub grub for decades. Weekday crowds can enjoy generous lunches under Paul Slater’s surrealist murals in the Saloon Bar at a reduced price as part of the Dish du Jour deal. Dishes like chicken Kiev with buttery mash and braised spinach are available for £21 rather than £27 on weekdays between midday and 4pm.
thecowlondon.com
£25 set lunch at The Elizabeth, Belgravia
The newly opened The Elizabeth in Belgravia has a set menu that changes with the seasons, priced from £25. For £10 more, a similar set dinner is on offer every weekday. Diners might start with a plate of Cornish mussels in a seasonal veloute followed by a house-made pappardelle in slow-cooked game ragu.
theelizabethsw1.co.uk
£40.50 weekday lunch at Chez Bruce, Wandsworth
Michelin-starred Chez Bruce is certainly special occasion-dining – but its two-course weekday set lunch at £40.50 is a more accessible way to enjoy its classic cooking. Mains include pork fillet with choucroute and trotter croquette; and potato gnocchi with roast squash.
chezbruce.co.uk
