The best lunches for £30 and under in the UK – including a Michelin-starred pub
Is three delicious courses for £30 a thing of distant memory? As costs have soared for chefs and restaurateurs, the price of eating out has nudged correspondingly upwards.
But don’t give up, especially in the middle of the day. Lunch doesn’t have to be an entirely forgettable grab-and-go.
Whether you’re after a sunny hour or so in a good pub, or three plates of food that transport you to France or Italy – where they know a thing or two about taking time for a decent lunch – the midday pause can be as memorably delicious as it is pocket-friendly.
There may be fewer options and the dishes may be slightly simpler, but they’re prepared by the same skilful chefs using the same quality ingredients you’ll find on the more elaborate menus.
And – top tip – it’s often easier to get a lunch booking than a prime-time evening table at the most sought-after spots.
The best bargains can take a bit of finding, so we’ve done the legwork – or should that be lunch-work? – for you. Pull up a seat and settle in for a real meal deal.
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London
Bocca di Lupo, Soho
Best for Italian heart in the heart of London
An Italian institution in Soho, loved not least for its staggeringly good-value lunch, offered also through the afternoon for theatre-goers. It’s just £18 for a salad starter followed by pasta – perhaps a perky mix of romaine lettuce, fennel and courgette in a fennel-seed dressing, followed by rigatoni with guanciale, broad beans and tons of pecorino. Add £7 for dessert such as ricotta-stuffed cannoli, and an espresso and you’re set for the afternoon. Closed from 4 August to 3 September for refurbishment.
Café Murano, Bermondsey, St James, Covent Garden
Best for a little bit of Angela Hartnett on your plate
The three branches of Café Murano, the casual offspring of Angela Hartnett’s glossy Mayfair flagship, Murano, are proof that lunch with the delicious touch of the regina of Italian cooking doesn’t have to break the bank. In fact it’s a steal at £25/£30 for two/three courses with choice. Expect dishes such as tuna tartare with chilli and capers or deep-fried crumbed sardines to dip in lemon aioli, then hand-rolled pici pasta cacio e pepe or sea bream with caponata, rounding off with plum and almond tart with fior di latte ice cream.
The Devonshire, Soho
Best for pub-meets-restaurant… and that rooftop
The revamp of this London pub – think dark wood, leather, cosy lighting, a roof-top terrace – has been a mega-hit, and the set menu is a mega-bargain. Neither the price nor the dishes change, absolving you of any decision making. Expect prawn-langoustine cocktail, steak and chips with bearnaise sauce, and sticky toffee pudding. It’s a trio of unerring classics and comes in at £25 for two courses, £29 for three. Simple dishes, done mega-well.
Josephine, Fulham
Best for the hearty flavours of Lyon
Claude Bosi’s classy hit bistro is packed with the culinary riches of his home town, Lyon, but for a lunch that’s as pocket-friendly as it is delicious, check out the “menu de canut”.
Named after Lyon’s 19th-century silk weavers, it might open with salade lyonnaise, follow with black pudding and mashed potato, and finish with an ethereal floating island. It’s £24.50/29.50 for two/three courses, there’s plenty of choice, and you’re tasting food with Bosi’s Michelin-starred pedigree.
The Palomar, Soho
Best for lively vibes and Middle Eastern warmth
This Theatreland spot may be 10 years old, but there’s no sign of its energy flagging, or the popularity of its broadly Middle Eastern menu waning. Pull up a seat at the counter for the best vibes, and choose the £28 prix fixe for three courses (Mon-Fri) that fizz with flavour. Start with pickles and tear-and-share kubaneh bread to scoop through dips, then baby cucumbers with soy tahini, finishing with a fish stew freshened with gremolata, or chicken in a garlicky yoghurt sauce. Add a sweet fourth course such as a pine nut tart for £4.50.
Noble Rot, Mayfair, Soho, Fitzrovia
Best for vinophiles – the by-the-glass selection is impressive...
For a true lunchtime meal-steal in central London, look no further than this trio of informal, wine-led French-style bistros: £22 for two courses, £26 for three. OK, there’s no choice, but who needs it when you might be offered summery piattoni green beans with goat’s curd and hazelnuts, then sardines on toast with tomatoes and basil, and honey parfait with a brandy snap. It’s simple, changes daily and won’t pole-axe you for the afternoon (unless, that is, the glorious wine list tempts too much…)
South-east England
The Coach, Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Best for a starry lunch at a bargain price
Fancy some Michelin-starred pub grub? Head to Tom Kerridge’s welcoming place in Marlow midweek (except Tuesdays) where for £15 you could lunch on sweetcorn soup with a swirl of herby, garlicky chimichurri, followed by a classy take on ham-egg-pineapple (honey-glazed bacon, fried egg, griddled pineapple). Push the boat out another £7.50 to add dessert – perhaps lemon fool with raspberry sorbet.
Quince, Westgate-on-Sea, Kent
Best for unfussy, produce-led cooking
Seasonal riches, mostly those from Kent, are given a kiss of Mediterranean sunshine and little else – because why fiddle with delicious things? – at this gem of a restaurant just outside Margate. Pull up a lunchtime table to find a cracking-value set menu (£26/£29.50 for two/three courses) offering the likes of lamb terrine with fig chutney; confit chicken leg with mustard creamed veg; and blood orange & almond cake with quince sorbet.
South-west England
Seahorse Restaurant, Dartmouth, Devon
Best for day-boat seafood and Italian warmth
The menù del giorno at the Tonks family’s much-loved restaurant on Dartmouth’s quay started out as something for the locals – but word spread. Sneaking in here at £30 for three courses, with choice, and deliciously anchored in seafood and Italy, you might scoop fried red mullet through saffron aioli before ray cheeks with lemon, capers and oregano or crisp whitebait and house tartare sauce. Apricot sorbet makes a refreshing finale.
East England
Watson & Walpole, Framlingham, Suffolk
Best for chef Rob Walpole’s pasta
Pasta calling? A firm favourite with those lucky enough to live in and around Framlingham, this neighbourly Italian restaurant provides a two-course lunchtime fix for just £21. On July’s menù fisso, burrata with griddled nectarines or a seafood salad are preludes to either house-made agnolotti alla gricia (guanciale) or paccheri with duck ragù with a side of moreish zucchini fritti. Desserts are extra, but the same team runs an ice cream parlour just up the road by the castle on the hill.
MJP at The Shepherds, Fen Ditton, Cambridgeshire
Best for classy cooking in a relaxed setting – and bedrooms too
In a peaceful village just outside Cambridge is Mark Poynton’s characterful pub-turned-restaurant with rooms. By all means linger over the ambitious tasting or a la carte menus, but for a simple, snappy lunch, check out the prix fixe (£22.50/£30 for two/three courses with choice). You might start with crisp lamb shoulder, before roasted fish – coley or pollock perhaps – with a classic sauce, finishing with sticky toffee pudding.
Midlands
Asha’s, Birmingham
Best for a lunchtime curry fix in glamorous surroundings
There’s a dose of home-style Indian cooking and a dash of contemporary style at Asha’s in central Birmingham. And amid all the polish, a midweek lunch can be fantastic value. You don’t have to prove any “executive” credentials to choose the Executive Lunch (£26.75, Mon-Fri) and feast on a platter of meat or veggie kebabs, followed perhaps by a kadhai paneer curry, lamb rogan josh, or the classic Punjabi chickpea curry, Amritsari chole. Rice, raita, poppadoms, breads, and a beer or glass of wine are included – as are possible celebrity sightings, should that be your thing.
North-west England
The White Horse, Churton, Cheshire
Best for pub classics and plenty of choice
There’s a lot of love for Gary Usher’s collection of neighbourhood bistros, and his one village pub. Drop in midweek for a ‘two for £20’ lunch deal that spoils for choice – pea and lovage arancini or sticky belly bacon with fresh leaves could kick things off, then maybe a smoked fish pie or the White Horse half-pounder. Add a honeycomb ice cream with dark chocolate sauce, and lunch is still well under £30.
Maray, Liverpool and Manchester
Best for informality and sunny flavours
Fun and friendly, these restaurants (on Liverpool’s Albert Dock and Bold Street, and central Manchester) are go-tos for a menu that’s global in inspiration. And at £18.50, there’s a cracking lunchtime deal. Choose a mezze starter – maybe cauliflower bhajis with red pepper dip – followed by two larger plates such as fried chicken with fenugreek, and chickpea dopiaza. Medjool date bread & butter pudding could round things off for an extra £7.50.
North-east England
Bouchon Bistrot, Hexham, Northumberland
Best for French country cooking
A firm local favourite – and for good reason. This welcoming slice of France in charming Hexham is a place to know when a hunger for straightforward bistro classics strikes. And when lunch can be £23/£25 for two/three courses, with choices – and a rooftop terrace for sunny days – all the more reason to book. Start perhaps with poached smoked haddock with wholegrain mustard, before steak-frites, and an apple tarte fine with cinnamon crème fraîche.
Scotland
The Palmerston, Edinburgh
Best for generous food in a perfect location
This handsome, light-filled Edinburgh spot bundles café, bakery and brasserie into one city-centre place to know. Make your way there midweek for satisfying, bistro-style cooking – and a set lunch for just £21/£24 for two/three courses. A recent visit offered tagliatelle with luxurious pork-fennel ragù; and a strawberries and cream choux bun.
Number 16, Glasgow
Best for a cosy spot and a menu of crowd-pleasers
An intimate spot and Glasgow favourite, Number 16’s loyal followers come for unfussy, contemporary takes on classic dishes. They come also for an affordable lunch (£24/£30 for two/three courses). There’s a feast of choices but you could narrow it down to cured Scottish salmon with fennel and dill yoghurt, followed by rigatoni with ox cheek ragù. The sweet-toothed shouldn’t miss the chocolate pavé with malt ice cream.
Wales
The Felin Fach Griffin, Brecon
Best for a taste of Wales and walks from the door
You can “Lunch for Less” at this much-loved pub with rooms on the edge of the Brecon Beacons. The “less” means £25 for two courses, or £30 for three; the “lunch” means perhaps cauliflower and Caerphilly cheese soup, followed by lamb faggot, mash and cavolo nero, finishing with bara brith tea bread with toasted milk ice cream. Perfect fuel ahead of a hike in the hills.
Prices were correct at time of publication. Drinks and service not included.