You Don't Need a Big Budget to Eat Well in Exeter
There's a stubborn myth that eating out means spending a fortune. That if you want anything beyond a meal deal from Tesco, you need to brace yourself for a bill that makes your eyes water. It's nonsense, frankly — and Exeter is living proof.
This city has always punched above its weight when it comes to food. There are independent kitchens turning out extraordinary meals for the price of a couple of pints. There are market stalls where five quid gets you something freshly made, beautifully spiced, and genuinely filling. There are tucked-away cafes where a fiver feels like a steal.
Whether you're a student stretching a maintenance loan, someone watching their spending during the cost of living squeeze, or simply a person who believes that cheap shouldn't mean cheerless — this guide is for you. Every place listed here serves proper food for under a tenner. Some of them will change the way you think about budget eating entirely.
And here's the thing worth saying up front: some of the best social moments happen over cheap food. A shared pizza. A spontaneous lunch at a market stall. Two bao buns and a bench in the sun. You don't need a three-course tasting menu to have a meaningful meal with someone. You just need to show up. If you're looking for ways to be more social without breaking the bank, our piece on socialising through the cost of living crisis is worth a read.
On prices. Every place in this guide serves a proper meal for under a tenner, and we check that when we review the list. We deliberately do not print individual dish prices: menus move faster than any guide can, and a stale number is worse than none. Take the under-£10 promise as the standard and check the board on the day.
The Street Food and Market Stalls
Guildhall Street Food Market — Guildhall Shopping Centre
If you haven't discovered the Guildhall Street Food Market yet, you're missing one of the best lunch spots in Exeter. Tucked into the theatrical space around St Pancras Church inside the Guildhall Shopping Centre, this little collection of street food traders operates seven days a week from 11am to 4pm, and almost everything on offer comes in well under a tenner.
The standout stalls include Dan's American Kitchen, a long-standing Exeter trader whose Philly cheesesteak sandwich has developed a near-cult following. It's messy, it's indulgent, and it costs less than you'd spend on a sad sandwich from a chain. Then there's Oasis Falafel and Grill, serving fresh Egyptian street food — falafel shawarma, chicken shawarma, or beef, all made to order, with homemade baklava to finish. Dog House rounds out the lineup with proper loaded hot dogs and burgers.
There's plenty of seating and the atmosphere is relaxed. It's the kind of place where you can meet a friend for a spontaneous midweek lunch without either of you worrying about the bill.
Hours: Daily 11am-4pm | Location: Guildhall Shopping Centre
Exeter Farmers' Market — Fore Street and South Street Corner
Every Thursday morning from 9am to 1pm, the corner of Fore Street and South Street transforms into a proper food market. The stalls change with the seasons, but you'll reliably find fresh pies, pasties, bread, cheese, and hot food — much of it sourced from farms within a few miles of the city.
For budget eating, the key is the hot food stalls. A freshly made pasty or pie with a side costs a fraction of a sit-down lunch, and the quality is leagues beyond anything you'd find in a chain bakery. The atmosphere is brilliant too — it's one of those rare moments where Exeter's high street feels like a proper community gathering rather than a shopping corridor.
Hours: Thursdays 9am-1pm | Location: Corner of Fore Street and South Street
The Farmers' Market is a brilliant place to pick up ingredients for a cheap dinner party at home. Grab some local cheese, a sourdough loaf, and some chutney — you'll spend under a tenner and have the makings of a spread that feels genuinely generous. Hosting doesn't have to be expensive; it just has to be thoughtful.
The Budget Restaurants
Red Panda — 29 Gandy Street
Red Panda might be the single best value meal in Exeter. This Vietnamese-inspired kitchen on Gandy Street serves soft, pillowy steamed bao buns stuffed with your choice of pulled pork, chicken, or spicy tofu. Add a salad box and you have a lunch that's fresh, flavourful, properly satisfying and comfortably inside a tenner.
Everything is made to order. The fillings sit inside those cloud-like steamed buns with carrot and radish pickle, cucumber, coriander, peanut powder, and crispy chilli. It's the kind of food that makes you wonder why you ever bothered with a meal deal. They also do rice boxes and super salad boxes if you're after something more substantial, all well within the under-£10 bracket.
The only catch is the hours — Red Panda keeps a short weekday lunch service and gets busy during the rush. Arrive early if you can, or be prepared to queue. It's worth the wait.
Hours: Lunchtimes, Tuesday to Saturday — check before you go | Location: 29 Gandy Street
The Dinosaur Cafe — 5 New North Road
The Dinosaur is one of Exeter's best-kept secrets, and it has been quietly feeding people brilliant Turkish and Mediterranean food for years. Run by a Turkish family, this unassuming cafe sits at 5 New North Road by the Iron Bridge — Exeter Central is the nearest station, about ten minutes' walk from St David's. It serves homemade meze by the small dish, with mains like kofte, moussaka, and kebabs, plus burgers and chips in steak, chicken, or falafel.
The food is entirely homemade, the portions are generous, and the atmosphere is warm and unpretentious. It's the kind of place where you could easily spend an hour over a plate of meze and a glass of Turkish wine without feeling rushed.
For a proper budget blow-out, order three or four small meze dishes to share between two — hummus, falafel, stuffed vine leaves, borek — and you'll be well-fed for the price of a round of drinks.
Hours: Check locally | Location: 5 New North Road (nearest station Exeter Central)
Taco Macho — 25 Paris Street (Inside Cuckoo Taproom)
Chef Gustavo has been serving authentic Mexican street food in Exeter for years, and Taco Macho remains one of the most generous meals you can buy in the city for under a tenner. Burritos, tacos, nachos, and quesadillas are all made fresh in front of you, and even the most loaded options stay inside a tenner.
The portion sizes are frankly absurd for the price. A burrito here is a proper two-handed affair, packed with slow-cooked meat, rice, beans, cheese, and whatever level of spice you can handle. Vegetarian and vegan options are available across the menu, and everything has that slightly smoky, deeply seasoned quality that comes from someone who genuinely knows what they're doing.
Hours: Check locally | Location: Cuckoo Taproom & Bottleshop, 25 Paris Street, EX1 2JB
Exeter has a genuinely impressive number of independent food businesses serving meals for under £10. What makes this city special isn't just the food — it's the people behind the counters. These are family-run kitchens, street food obsessives, and cooks who chose flavour over fancy interiors. Supporting them is one of the best things you can do with a tenner. For more on Exeter's brilliant independent food scene, have a look at our guide to the best restaurants in Exeter.
The Quick Lunch Spots
Chopstix Noodle Bar — 198 High Street
Sometimes you just want something hot, fast, and filling without any fuss. Chopstix on the High Street does exactly that — Oriental fusion noodle and rice boxes, with options like salt and pepper chicken, BBQ chicken, and a range of vegetable-based dishes. You pick your protein, pick your base, and they box it up in minutes.
It's not going to win any awards for fine dining, but as a weekday lunch when you've got twenty minutes and a limited budget, it's hard to beat. The Most Valuable Box meal deal is particularly good value if you want a drink and a side included.
Hours: Standard retail hours | Location: 198 High Street
Hook Fish and Chips — 88 South Street
If you're after proper fish and chips without the grease-soaked newspaper experience, Hook on South Street is the place. This contemporary chippy does things properly — sustainably sourced fish, chips cut fresh daily, and a surprisingly broad menu that includes pies, burgers, and a solid vegetarian selection alongside the classics.
A standard portion of fish and chips is fair value for the quality, and they cover both lunch and dinner. It's also available on Deliveroo if you'd rather eat at home — though frankly, fish and chips are best eaten walking along the quay.
Hours: Lunch through to evening, seven days | Location: 88 South Street
Comptoir Libanais — Guildhall Shopping Centre
For something a little more colourful, Comptoir Libanais — now trading as Comptoir Libanais/Yalla Yalla — serves Lebanese mezze and wraps at prices that are surprisingly reasonable for a sit-down restaurant. You can build a proper meal from the mezze menu for well under a tenner: a falafel wrap, some hummus, a side of tabbouleh.
The Chicken Taouk Wrap and Cheese Samboussek are both popular choices, and the homemade lemonades are worth adding to the order. It's a chain, yes, but a good one — and the quality of the ingredients puts it above most comparable options on the high street.
Hours: Standard restaurant hours | Location: 20 Guildhall Shopping Centre, EX4 3HW
The Pub and Evening Options
The Old Firehouse — New North Road
The Old Firehouse is a proper Exeter institution — a rustic pub near Exeter Central Station that serves enormous 14-inch square pizzas big enough to share between two or three people. Split one and you have a sit-down evening meal with character, live music, and a West Country cider selection for less than most places charge for a single plate. They run pizza deals through the week — check the board when you arrive.
Beyond the pizzas, the Old Firehouse runs a famous Monday quiz night, free live music, and open mic sessions. It is the kind of pub where an evening stretches well past closing time, and it is beloved by both students and locals. If you want an affordable night out that feels like a proper social occasion, this is hard to beat. You will find more options in our best pubs in Exeter guide.
Oh My Kimchi — Blackboy Road
Exeter's new Korean restaurant uses a self-service ordering system to keep prices competitive, and several dishes come in well under a tenner. A bibimbap — a rice bowl loaded with seasoned vegetables, meat or tofu, and a fried egg — is filling, flavourful, and affordable. The vegan and gluten-free options are clearly marked, and the restaurant is about five minutes' walk from the city centre with free street parking nearby. It is one of the most interesting budget additions to the city's food scene. More details in our Indian and Asian restaurants guide.
Gourmet Peri Peri — Sidwell Street
On the Sidwell Street stretch that has quietly become one of Exeter's best streets for affordable food, Gourmet Peri Peri serves meal boxes that land comfortably under a tenner. The portions are generous, the chicken is properly spiced, and for a quick dinner that fills you up without emptying your wallet, it is a solid choice. Pair it with a walk down to the quay and you have an evening out for under a tenner.
Sidwell Street is Exeter's unsung hero for budget food. Within a five-minute walk, you can find Korean, peri peri, noodle bars, and traditional cafes — all serving proper meals for well under £10. It is worth exploring if you have been sticking to the high street.
The Money-Saving Tricks
Too Good To Go
If you haven't downloaded the Too Good To Go app yet, do it now. It connects you with local cafes, bakeries, and restaurants that have surplus food at the end of the day, and sells it as surprise "Magic Bags" at a fraction of the counter price. You don't get to choose exactly what's in the bag, but it's always worth significantly more than what you pay.
Several Exeter businesses are on the app, and it's a genuinely brilliant way to eat well for almost nothing while reducing food waste. Some people have built entire weekly meal plans around it.
Student Discounts
If you're a student, Exeter is generous with discounts. Several chains in the city run student offers through UNiDAYS and Student Beans, and they change month to month — it's worth checking both apps before eating anywhere, because the savings add up quickly.
The best budget eating strategy in Exeter is to mix and match: market lunches during the week, a Too Good To Go bag on the way home, and a proper sit-down meal at somewhere like the Dinosaur or Red Panda when you want to treat yourself. You can eat brilliantly in this city for very little — you just need to know where to look. For more ideas on exploring Exeter's food scene, check out our guide to the best brunch spots.
The Social Angle: Why Cheap Eats Matter
Here's what we've noticed running Dinners With Friends: the meals people remember most aren't always the expensive ones. They're the spontaneous ones. The "shall we just grab something?" meals. The ones where you end up sitting on a bench outside a market stall, or squeezed into a tiny cafe, talking properly because there's nothing else to distract you.
Expensive restaurants can sometimes create pressure — pressure to perform, to order the right wine, to justify the bill. Cheap eats strip all of that away. A burrito eaten off a paper tray doesn't care about your social status. A bao bun doesn't judge. When the food is affordable, the focus shifts to the company — which is exactly where it should be.
So next time someone suggests meeting up but money's tight, don't cancel. Suggest a stall at the Guildhall market, or a couple of bao buns from Red Panda, or a takeaway from Taco Macho eaten on the cathedral green. Some of the best friendships in the world have been built on cheap food and good conversation.
If you're looking for more ways to socialise without spending a fortune, have a look at our guide to the best pubs in Exeter — a pint and a packet of crisps still counts as going out. Our student guide to social life in Exeter covers more options beyond food, and if you want to combine cheap eats with free activities, the best walking routes around Exeter and the best coffee shops are both worth a look.
For the latest deals and openings, Visit Exeter's food and drink page is a reliable starting point, and the Exeter University Students' Guild eating guide has useful tips for budget-conscious diners of all ages — not just students.