It’s no secret that cozzie livs are on the rise – that’s ‘cost-of-living prices’ to those other than millennials and Gen Z-ers. And those prices are a bit rude if we’re being honest. Spending dollars on everyday items like food can really put a dent in the ol’ wallet, so we’ve compiled a list of 13 eateries slinging cheap and substantial eats for under $15 in the Adelaide city centre, and they all happen to serve plant-based options too – take a look.
1. City Indian Cuisine
You’ve either walked past City Indian Cuisine hundreds of times or you’re a regular – there’s no in between. Located on the experience that is Hindley Street, right near the corner of Bank Street, you’ll find the humble eatery offering comforting meals with big flavours accompanied by incredible value for money. Majority of City Indian Cuisine’s menu is below the $15 mark, and you can enjoy a whopping three curries with rice from $5.90 for the smaller serves, and up to $12.90 for the larger serves. All vegetarian main courses are under $15, while lamb, chicken, and beef medium sized main courses come in at $15.20, if you’re willing to go the extra 20 cents. Both vegetable and onion pakoras will set you back just $1, mango lassis go for $3.50, and delectable gulab jamun desserts are up for grabs for a mere $2.50.
Where: 38A Hindley St
2. Lucias Pizza & Spaghetti Bar
Lucias Pizza & Spaghetti Bar is a South Australian institution for authentic southern Italian cuisine. Having opened their doors in 1957, Lucias’ Adelaide Central Market location is still in operation and it’s plain to see why, with ‘plain’ being their polar opposite. Find toasted ciabattas, fresh focaccias, and hearty minestrone soup on the menu, as well as margarita pizzas for just $12. Pop next door to Lucias Charcuterie for freshly made sandwiches with market bread.
Where: Shop 1-2 Central Western Mall, Adelaide Central Market
3. Pondok Daun
Pondok Daun never fails to satisfy with their decent serving sizes and dang tasty Indonesian cuisine. This restaurant is a no frills situation, but their dishes pack a punch nonetheless. Grab a chicken curry with rice for $13.90, fried whole catfish with rice and soup for $13.80, char kway teow and bihun goreng for similar prices, as well as the Indonesian staple gado-gado for $13.80 too – real flavoursome stuff.
Where: 94 Currie Street
4. Miss Mai
The humble Vietnamese banh mi can do no wrong, and Miss Mai has got the goods. You’ll often see a lineup down Gawler Place with eager mouths waiting to chow down on the lunch rolls or salad bowls. Choose from succulent roast pork, lemongrass chicken, bbq pork, and fried tofu, amongst a number of standard banh mi options, with a Miss Mai flare.
Where: 73 Gawler Pl, and Shop 9/205 Pirie St
5. Two-Bit Villains
Ever wondered who that Adelaide Arcade balcony overlooking Rundle Mall belongs to? That’s Two-Bit Villains. Hidden on the second floor of the olde worlde arcade lies the beaut vegetarian eatery. Here you’ll find diner-style food such as burgers, hotdogs, sundaes and house-made sodas. Majority of their menu is under $15, which means you can wrap your mouth around fare with the likes of a coyote cheeseburger, sloppy joe, slow-cooked ‘pork’ and slaw burger, chilli cheese fries, and grilled ‘bacon’ mac and cheese.
Where: Adelaide Arcade, Shop 150, Level 1, 111/117 Rundle Mall
6. Dumpling King
Debatably at top of the game for cheap and scrumptious dumplings in Adelaide; Dumpling King. The restaurant isn’t anything flash, but what they lack in aesthetics, they make up for with their food. Guzzle dumplings with the likes of: peking pork, chicken and prawn, tofu and vegetable, and beef choices, as well as fried pork buns. Slurp a hot and sour soup or beef soup for just $8.80 too.
Where: 85 Grote St
7. Thea Tea Shop
Another vegetarian restaurant delivering the cheap and sensational eats is Thea Tea Shop. They’ve been serving up plant-based Taiwanese cuisine in Adelaide since the year 2000, so it’s safe to say they know a thing or two about excellent flavours. Their menu sees large meals like: bbq mock pork with rice, crispy Hainan-style rice, old-style noodle soup, mouth-watering laksa, and dim sum all under $15. Plus a big old list of herbal and bubble teas, and a bonus vegetarian grocer downstairs too.
Where: 110 Gawler Pl
8. Levant Eatery
Located somewhat off of the beaten track, Levant Eatery continues to deliver delightful Middle Eastern eats at a reasonable price. You can wrap your hot little hands around any one of their six, half pita pockets for just $10. Snack on the ‘beef etta’ pocket with grain-fed beef, feta, mixed lettuce, tomato, onion, capsicum, and beetroot sauce; or the ‘falafel v’ pocket with homemade falafels, grilled vegetables, mixed lettuce, and muhammara sauce – to name a couple. Popcorn cauliflower, halloumi fries, and pita chips with dip also grace their menu.
Where: 70 Pirie St, and 252 Hindley St
9. Veggie Vie
If you’re after something both healthful and refreshing, Veggie Vie has got your back. Tuck into any one of their three loaded smoothie bowls for $14.5, which at a glance looks like: the cacao choc bowl with banana, avocado, dates, raw cacao powder, and coconut milk topped with house-made granola, cacao nibs, fresh fruit and a drizzling of peanut butter – you just know you’re going to be feeling good after that. Veggie Vie also has an extensive list of smoothies, juices, specialty hot drinks, and organic coffees and teas, as well as daily soups and plentiful desserts.
Where: 16 McHenry St
10. Toast
The cafe with the most is Toast – blink and you’ll miss it though, they’re tucked in a cozy nook along Bank Street. As the name suggests, Toast offers many an item containing bread’s crisped cousin with the likes of toasties enveloping chorizo, potato, spinach, and aioli, hefty ham and cheese croissants, and even omnivorous and herbivorous, handmade sausage rolls. They’re also up early making quiches, muffins, empanadas, sweet and savoury pastries, pies, soups, and of course coffees too, with heaps of experimental menu items popping up all over the shop.
Where: 19 Bank St
11. Pure Vegetarian
This place has been serving the people of Adelaide for literal yonks, definitely over a decade, and it sure does show via their scrumptious plates of nosh. Taking up residence of a corner spot inside the Market Plaza Food Court, just off of the Adelaide Central Market, you’ll find Pure Vegetarian offering 100 per cent vegan food from their buffet-style eatery. Their portions are mammoth and you can grab a loaded plate with three different dishes plus fried rice or stir-fried hokkein noodles for a mere $13.80. Sweet and sour pork, mutton curry, spicy stir-fried eggplant, crispy fish, and Chinese braised cabbage are regulars on the rotating menu, to name a few. There’s always a selection of more-so sauteed options as well as indulgent deep-fried options too – both delightful of course.
Where: Shop 8, 14 Moonta St, Market Plaza Food Court
12. Sushi Hub
Sushi Hub is a Rundle Mall blessing. Two stores take charge of the mall; one down the west end and one up the east end of the strip. Delicious sushi awaits you behind the glass counter with the usual offenders; inari, nigiri, rolls, sashimi, and tempura sushi. They’re simply the best with the teriyaki rolls and inari a highlight for us.
Where: Shop B 1/3 Rundle Mall, and 141-159 Rundle Mall
13. Midnight Spaghetti
Midnight Spaghetti sits above Adelaide’s grunge-pub hotspot, The Crown & Anchor Hotel on Grenfell Street in the East End, and they bring cool Italian dining the to the upstairs locale. And on Wednesdays, Midnight Spaghetti offer a special menu where nothing can be found over the $15 budget. Find: basil pesto pasta; bolognese with maccheroncini, veal, pork, and chives; their famed ‘midnight spaghetti’ with anchovy, kalamata olives, chilli, and pangratatto; arancini of three cheese risotto and napoletana sauce; confit leeks in spring onion oil, buckwheat, ajo blanco, and chilli oil; as well as Biscoff and Nutella creme canoli, to name a few.
Where: 196 Grenfell St