Cheap places to eat in Birmingham

Did you know Birmingham has the most Michelin-starred restaurants in the UK outside London? Pretty impressive. But if, like us, you get a bit giddy at the weekend and spend a month's pay in one go, Michelin-starred restaurants aren’t going to fit your budget.

But no worries! There are loads of cheap places to eat in Birmingham, so you can enjoy some tasty food and not have to tidy up all without breaking the bank. Check them out below! 

The Indian Streatery

Photo: The Indian Streatery / Facebook.com 

Where: 21a Bennett's Hill, Birmingham B2 5QP

Birmingham isn't short of delicious Indian restaurants to try, but The Indian Streatery is something else. Starting out as a family of street food vendors, the family's food quickly became one of the city's favourite spots. Fast-forward to the present, and they're still firm favourites in Birmingham but with a beautiful street food restaurant. They have a grab-and-go lunch menu for lunchtime at work, cocktails, and lots of delicious, affordable dishes. Most of the menu is under a tenner! 

The Distillery

Photo: DistilleryB16 / Facebook.com 

Where: 4 Sheepcote Street, Birmingham B16 8AE

The Distillery is a popular venue and is one of the best cheap restaurants in Birmingham, with a good selection of dishes. Choose from pizzas, which cost around the £10 mark, small plates, and more like lamb shawarma, the vegan cheeseburger, and smoked pork ribs. Or head over on Sunday for their juicy Sunday lunch for around £15. Pizzas can also be made gluten-free and vegan! 

Bodega Cantina 

Photo: Bodega Cantina Birmingham / Facebook.com 

Where: 12 Bennetts Hill, Birmingham B2 5RS 

Bodega Cantina brings delicious, affordable homemade South-American-inspired dishes to Birmingham. All of their tacos are under £7. The Halloumi Taco on a bed of slaw topped with guacamole and sunflower seeds sounds gorgeous. But so does the Dr Pepper Pork on red pickled cabbage. Guess you’ll just have to get the Taco Platter to try a few! Bodega Cantina is also perfect for coeliacs, with most of the menu being gluten-free.  

@Pizza 

Photo: at.pizza (Unit 33 Grand Central, Birmingham) / Facebook.com 

Where: Unit 33 Grand Central, Birmingham B2 4BF 

At @Pizza, you can walk up to the counter and choose your toppings yourself. Pretty cool, huh? There are over 50,000 possible combinations for you to choose from when crafting your dream pizza. But if that’s too much responsibility or you can’t decide, they have their own pizza designs to choose from. And there are vegan-friendly, gluten-free, and dairy-free options too!

Indico Mailbox 

Photo: Indico Mailbox / Facebook.com 

Where: 113 - 115 Wharfside Street, The Mailbox, Birmingham B1 1RF 

Indian is the one cuisine that pretty much everyone loves. There’s always something for vegetarians and gluten-free folk, and the meat dishes never disappoint. So if you’re looking for cheap places to eat in Birmingham and fancy Indian food, check out Indico Mailbox. They have small street food chaats if you want to try a few different dishes. Or you can just dive in with the main dishes that range from £8.95 - £23.95. All the classics are there, like chicken tikka, samosas, bhaji, biryani, and more. 

The Meat Shack

Photo: The Meat Shack Burgers / Facebook.com 

Where: 17 Thorp Street, Birmingham B5 4AT 

Giant, greasy burgers packed with flavour are a much-welcomed treat every now and then. There’s something weirdly satisfying, even if it’s a bit gross, about burger juice dripping down your hand as you munch. If you love a bit of that, The Meat Shack will make all your burger dreams come true. Their burgers (including chicken and vegetarian) are all £10 or less, their loaded fries are £3-6, and their buttermilk brined fried chicken pieces are between £5.50-7.  

Hen and Chickens 

Photo: Hen and Chickens / Facebook.com 

Where: 27 Constitution Hill, Birmingham B19 3LE 

Hen and Chickens is a lovely desi pub in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter. So if you’re due a catch up with a mate, head over for a pint and some North Indian Punjabi (desi) food! Most of their lamb curries are around £11, and the chicken curries are about £10. There's a solid selection of strong vegetarian dishes and sides to order for the table that you inevitably won't finish because you overordered, but it's fine because you'll just take it home.

The Stable 

Photo: The Stable / Instagram.com 

Where: Unit 1 Orion, 115 John Bright Street, Birmingham B1 1BE

The Stable makes fresh sourdough pizza every day, hand stretching the bases before dolloping homemade San Marzano tomato sauce on top. You can enjoy one of these tasty treats for less than £14. Choose from classics like Proper Margherita or go for something a bit unusual like the Burger On The Dancefloor. Or you could try one from their vegan or plant-based menu, such as the Mushroom Magic or Build Me Up Butternut. There are also other bites like the meat platter to share, salads, and mac n cheese.

Dishroom 

Photo: Dishoom / Facebook.com 

Where: One Chamberlain Sq, Birmingham B3 3AX

Dishroom pays homage to the Irani cafes that were all over Bombay in the 1960s. They've got a breakfast menu, an all-day menu, and menus specifically for vegans, gluten-free, and dairy-free diets. There's food from the open-air grill, small plates for sharing, classics like biryani, cocktails, mocktails, and more. The prices of their main dishes are usually around £10-13. Dishroom has a fantastic reputation and is easily one of the best places for cheap eats in Birmingham - why not give it a go? 

Mowgli Birmingham 

Photo: Mowgli Street Food / Facebook.com 

Where: Unit 30, Stephenson Pl, Birmingham B2 4BF

Look at that picture. Really look at it. You can almost smell the herbs and spices through the screen. It’s delicious. Healthy with lots of vegan options and even more flavour, Mowgli was created to serve the food Indians eat at home and on their streets. The dishes from the street meats section of the menu are £7.50-9, street chat from £5-8, and curries are amazing value at £2.50-4.50. It’s cheap, tasty, and healthy without tasting too healthy - basically the whole package, 

We’ll never say no to a cheeky bite to eat, and neither should you! Not when there are so many fantastic cheap restaurants in Birmingham. Click or tap here to check out what foodie events are going down in Birmingham. 

Check out our What's On Guide to discover even more rowdy raves and sweaty gigs taking place over the coming weeks and months. For festivals, lifestyle events and more, head on over to our Things To Do page or be inspired by the event selections on our Inspire Me page.

Header: Dishroom / Facebook.com