Kirby’s Top 5 Series

I can’t believe it but after almost 10 years, I’m doing another Cheap Eats blog post for all of you, and this time, I’m calling it ‘cheap’ if the meal is between $10-$15 per person.

Back in 2013, I wrote a “Top 5 Cheap Eats under $5” and a “Top 10 Cheap Eats under $10” blog post (no longer relevant now – sad!!) and many of you loved it. I still can’t get over the fact that we could’ve had meals for under $5 per person before! Oh, how things have changed… 😭

There are so many cheap eats in Vancouver to discover so I will either continue to update this list or create another Top 5 Cheap Eats list Part 2 🙂. I’ve excluded snacks, desserts, and other small items for this list. I also tried to avoid only mentioning food court options here because I know I’ll be sharing an additional Top 5 food court stalls post (coming soon). I opted for full entree meals between the $10-$15 range per person for this post!

TOP 5 CHEAP EATS in no particular order

1. Cha Don

Cha Don is one of my favourite Hong Kong Style Cafes in the city and for good reason! No one does silky scrambled eggs like them in Vancouver and their prices are honestly SUPER REASONABLE. For $13.50, you can have a full Breakfast set with Macaroni Soup with Sausage/Ham, a hot drink, and a plate of buttered toast and scrambled eggs!

They also have a fantastic Thick Scrambled Egg Sandwich which is a MUST GET item! It is roughly $6.50 CAD but either way, you can get full off this sandwich and it won’t cost you $10.

If you go during lunch time, you can try a variety of their lunch items which are also quite reasonably priced. I love their Curry Beef Brisket and Tendon on Rice, as well as their Club Sandwich (look how thick it is!!!).

Just come here 🙂 You won’t regret it! They have multiple locations so just search “Cha Don” in Google Maps and you can likely find a location near you.

2. Shanghai Dimsum House at Crystal Mall food court

If you have been following me on Instagram @eatingwithkirby, you’ll know that I am obsessed with the Crystal Mall food court (in Burnaby). Not only is it more affordable than other places for a meal, but it really is a no frills, authentic, mom and pop place to get some really really delicious Asian food. My latest obsession has been the Shanghai Soup Dumplings from Shanghai Dimsum House.

They offer the largest, most juiciest Soup Dumplings (aka XLB, aka Xiao Long Baos) and they are LEGIT. It’s $9.50 CAD if I’m not mistaken, so it’s even cheaper than $10 for a full steamer of 6! The aunties work with superior precision and efficiency every single day. They never take a day off and truly work so hard!

3. Fraser Park Restaurant

Fraser Park Restaurant is a little German hidden gem tucked away in an industrial area in Burnaby. You will never just bump into this place unless you are purposely seeking it out, but the trek is absolutely worth it.

While inflation has caught up over the years, you can still easily walk away completely stuffed for under $15 per person. Their legendary German Breakfast is currently priced at $22.00, but it is so massive that it easily feeds two people. For just $11.00 each, you get three scrambled eggs with sauteed peppers, onions, and cheese, plus handmade hash browns, sausage, bacon, ham, a potato pancake, and toast!! That I have to say, is a pretty good deal.

photo by Vinita T (Yelp)

If you want a full entree all to yourself, they have fantastic individual options under $15:

Regular Breakfast ($12.95): Two eggs any style with hash browns, a potato pancake, and toast.
Schnitzel Sandwich ($11.75): Their famous crispy schnitzel served on an organic ciabatta bun with lettuce, tomato, and homemade mayo.
Breakfast On The Run ($12.00): A loaded breakfast sandwich with your choice of house-made sausage, bacon, egg, lettuce, tomato, and mayo on ciabatta.

4. The Hideout Diner

Photo by Florence H (Yelp)

Located over on Glen Drive in Vancouver, The Hide Out Diner is another fantastic spot for large portions that keep your wallet happy. 😊 They serve up classic, comforting diner food with great value, making it a perfect addition to this list!

The best part is that you can get full entree items here that come complete with sides without going over the $15 threshold!!

These are some of my reccos:

The Standard Breakfast ($13.99): A hearty plate featuring two eggs any style, your choice of thick-cut hickory bacon, fried ham, or premium lamb sausage, served alongside a mountain of crispy hash browns and toast.
Breakfast Sandwich ($11.99): It’s a hefty breakfast sandwich consisting o lettuce, tomato, egg, bacon, cheese, brioche bun, and hashbrowns!
Waffles ($13.50): If you want something hearty and a bit sweet for the morning, give their waffles a try!

5. Namba Curry (Kingsway)

Photo by David W (Yelp)

For a taste of Japan without breaking the bank, I would highly recommend you check out Namba Curry on Kingsway! They have a sister location called Oretachi Curry in Steveston as well and the menu and quality is pretty much the same.

My favourite item to get is their Curry Rice (either with chicken katsu or sausage) but this will bring you dollar or two over $15. If you want to stick to items under $15, I would recommend:

Aburi Cheese Curry ($14.50) – Curry, cheese, rice, what could be better than that?!
Pumpkin Curry ($14) – Comes with a pumpkin croquette!
Original Tonkotsu Ramen ($14) – its a tonkotsu and shoyu ramen, made with their signature pork and seafood broth!