October 28, 2026
Chic on a Budget: A NYC Guide to Cheap Eats
By Quinn Dwyer
By Amanda Shea Hungria
As a food enthusiast, I’m on a mission to find seven places around New York City’s most expensive neighborhoods that you, your tummy, and your wallet deserve to know about.
Why am I doing this? From the loss of the $4 bacon, egg, and cheese to the disappearance of the 50-cent honey bun, many New Yorkers have found themselves in situations where the prices for foods they loved suddenly skyrocketed due to a national trend of increasing utility and rent prices.
But everyone deserves to “treat themselves” no matter how much you have in your wallet, so let’s go!
I started my journey by hopping on the 6 train, where I got off at 103rd Street. Here you’ll find Smashies nearby. Smashies is a beloved staple of El Barrio, serving the neighborhood for over 30 years. Once you go in, you’ll find owner Roddy Duran, aka Mr. Smashie, behind the counter, ready to take your order with a warm smile.
“Can I get the dollar special, please?”
“Coming right up.”
You must be asking what the dollar Smashie special is. Well, it’s ham and cheese on a roll, toasted with light mayo, that all comes together for a flavorful sandwich perfect for a morning toast or midday snack, and all for one crisp dollar!
When I asked Duran, “Why do you choose to keep this dollar special?” his answer stuck with me: “I wanted to give something back to the community; they have given me so much, so I wanted to give back, and this was the way I could.”
Next up, I hopped on the 4 train down to 14th Street – Union Square, where you can find Mixue. It seems as if this chain popped out of nowhere. It is a Malaysian company that has gone global on a mission to deliver “high-quality soft serve and tea beverages at prices everyone can afford.” So on this hot summer day, I got a vanilla soft serve cone along with a large lemonade for only $3 (lemonade: $2.99, soft serve: $1.19). It was sweet, refreshing, and most importantly, saved me some bucks.
After that, I walked about eight minutes to Luckin Coffee. Similar to Mixue, it is a Chinese coffeehouse that has come to the US, offering good quality matcha and coffee, along with low prices. For $1.99, I got a delicious matcha that usually goes for $6 to $8 at competing companies. As a teen who’s constantly on the move and needs a pick-me-up, Luckin Coffee is a lifesaver when I want good quality, but also good savings.
I continued my journey south to Chinatown, where I finally made it to Gai Kitchen. It’s a Thai spot with $6.50 Thai-roasted or Hainanese chicken, with a choice of white or ginger rice. I ordered the Thai roasted chicken with ginger rice along with an iced jasmine green tea for an additional $3.95. As I waited for my food, the restaurant’s calm, quiet atmosphere soothed me, since I had been running around the city to these places for a couple of hours. When my food came, it was rich in flavor and warm. The portion came in a one-pound foil plate, and it did the job for $6.50. The iced jasmine green tea was sweet and crisp. For $10.45, I not only got a plate plus a drink but a moment of quiet from the chaos of the city streets.
As the true New Yorker I am, I walked a solid 25 minutes to my next stop: Dollar Taqueria, located within City Acres Market. When I say this spot is a hidden gem, I mean it literally and figuratively. In the middle of 70 Pine Street, you’ll find this mini market, and if you go all the way to the back, you’ll find Dollar Taqueria, which serves five tinga or carnitas tacos for $5. The service was quick, which was perfect as my appetite was ready once again. I got five carnitas tacos, which came with two hot sauces and two limes. As I hopped on the train, the sourness of the lime and the tastiness of the carnitas all came together so appetizingly that I downed all five on the G train. Happy stomach, happy pockets.
Did I say G train? Well, that’s right because we are heading to Greenpoint, Brooklyn! Greenpoint is another neighborhood greatly impacted by surging rent prices. Once known as Little Poland, now an upscale waterfront district, the NYU Furman Center found that from 1990 to 2010–2014, Williamsburg/Greenpoint saw a 78.7% increase in rents. Naturally, this massive rent increase greatly impacted the demographics of the neighborhood. Higher-income households pushed out many working- and middle-class Polish who used to make up the bulk of the residents.
Of course, history can’t be fully erased, which is why I made a stop at Cafe Rivera. Operating for over 20 years, Cafe Rivera offers Polish bakery goods as well as French pastries. When you enter, the vibe is cozy and warm; cashiers speak Polish, holding space for the native Polish in the area and the culture that is true to Greenpoint. I ended up getting a turkey cream cheese croissant and a raspberry tart. At first glance, you see a regular croissant and a covered tart, but when you bite into the croissant, you get creamy and fluffy cream cheese with turkey ham. When you bite into the tart, you get a tart yet sweet raspberry filling. For $6 ($3 each), this is a favorite that I will definitely continue visiting, and I hope you do too.
It’s 4:27 pm now, and I’ve been running around the city and finally made it to my last destination of the day for a classic burger. As soon as you enter Jubilee Market, you’ll see the sign for a $2.90 burger, or, as they like to say, “The burger, less than your MTA fare.” As a huge fan of burgers, a lot was on the line. The patty came out, and once I bit into it, the flavor hit me. Fresh grilled meat, melted cheese, caramelized onions, pickles, and some sort of sauce—I felt my eyes widen. For $2.90, I would have gotten ten more; this hidden spot was by far my favorite on the list. Run, don’t walk, to rate these places for yourself and let me know what you think.
