How Much Does It Cost to Eat Out in London? (2026 Averages)

London’s restaurant scene is world-class — and world-priced. So how much does it cost to eat out in London on average? From £12 lunch deals to £150 tasting menus, here’s what you’ll actually pay at every level.

Average costs by meal type

• Coffee + pastry: £5–£7
• Casual lunch (sandwich/meal deal): £7–£12
• Mid-range lunch (café/bistro main): £14–£22
• Pub meal (main + pint): £20–£28
• Mid-range dinner (2 courses + drink): £35–£55 per person
• Proper restaurant dinner (3 courses + wine): £60–£100 per person
• Fine dining tasting menu: £100–£200+ per person (wine pairing extra)
• Takeaway/delivery: £12–£20 per person

The hidden extras

• Service charge: 12.5% is standard (often “discretionary” — you can ask to remove it, though it’s awkward)
• Drinks: the great multiplier — a £16 main becomes a £40 bill with two glasses of wine (£8–£14/glass in central London)
• Tap water: free by law if requested — don’t let them sell you bottled
• Cover charges: rare in London, but check tourist-trap areas

Real cost rule of thumb: menu price + 12.5% service + drinks = roughly 1.5x the menu total for a typical dinner.

Eating well for less: the London playbook

1. Lunch > dinner: many top restaurants do set lunches at half the dinner price — 2–3 courses for £25–£40 at places that charge £80+ in the evening.
2. Pre-theatre menus (5–7pm): 2–3 courses £25–£35 in the West End — no theatre ticket required.
3. BYOB restaurants: bring your own bottle (corkage £5–£15) — common in Brick Lane curry houses and many independents; saves £20+ on wine.
4. Soft launches: new restaurants often do 50%-off soft launch weeks — follow Hot Dinners for announcements.
5. Street food markets: Borough, Broadway, Maltby Street, Mercato Metropolitano — £8–£14 for excellent food.
6. Chain deals: Wetherspoons, Franco Manca (£10 pizzas), Dishoom (breakfast deals) — chains done well.
7. Eat early: many places discount the 5–6:30pm slot.

For the ultimate budget Sunday, see cheap Sunday roasts in London.

Cuisine value rankings

• Best value: Turkish ocakbasi, South Asian (Brick Lane, Tooting, Southall), Chinese (Chinatown set lunches), Vietnamese (Kingsland Road)
• Mid value: Italian independents, pub food, Thai
• Priciest: sushi/Japanese, steakhouse, modern British fine dining, anything in Mayfair

Delivery vs eating in

Deliveroo/Uber Eats add 15–30% over restaurant prices (service fees, delivery fees, inflated menu prices) — a £40 restaurant meal becomes £50–£55 delivered. Collection is usually menu price. The cheapest “eating out” is often high-street collection.

The bottom line

Budget £25–£35 per person for a decent casual dinner out in London (all-in), £50–£70 for a proper restaurant meal, and £12–£18 for lunch. The savvy move: set lunches, pre-theatre deals, BYOB spots and street food markets — London rewards the strategic diner enormously. The most expensive way to eat out is spontaneously at 8pm on a Saturday; the cheapest is a planned Tuesday lunch.

The London food calendar: when to eat out

Timing matters as much as venue choice. January: restaurant January sales — set menus at 30–50% off as places fill empty tables (book the deals, not the full price). London Restaurant Festival (October): special menus across hundreds of restaurants. Soft launches: year-round — new openings do 50% off for the first 1–2 weeks (follow Hot Dinners and Eater London). Christmas: prices peak, set menus everywhere, book months ahead or avoid.

Day of week: Tuesday–Thursday is the value sweet spot — weekend prices, weekend crowds and weekend booking pressure all ease. Monday: many top restaurants close — check before planning. Sunday: roast deals (see our cheap Sunday roast guide), but limited menus elsewhere. Lunch vs dinner: the eternal rule — lunch set menus at serious restaurants run 40–60% of dinner prices for 80% of the experience.

Eating out FAQs

How much should I budget for a weekend in London (food)? Budget: £40–£60/day (street food, markets, supermarket meal deals, one pub meal). Mid-range: £80–£120/day (café lunches, decent dinners). Blowout: £150–£250+/day (fine dining, cocktails). Two days mid-range for two: £350–£500 all-in. The drinks multiplier is the budget killer — two glasses of wine with dinner adds £20–£30 daily.

Is the service charge mandatory? “Discretionary” service charge (usually 12.5%) is optional by law — you can ask for it to be removed. In practice: most people pay it; removing it for good service is socially awkward. Remove or reduce it for genuinely bad service — that’s what “discretionary” means, and restaurants know it. Always check whether it’s already added before tipping extra — double-tipping is the classic tourist error.

What’s the cheapest way to eat in central London? Street food markets (£8–£14 — Borough, Leather Lane, Berwick Street), meal deals (£3.50–£5 — Tesco/Sainsbury’s/Boots), Chinatown set lunches (£10–£15), Pret/Greggs (£5–£8), food halls (Market Hall, Arcade — £10–£16, good quality). Sit-down under £15 in Zone 1: Franco Manca pizza (£10), Dishoom breakfast (£8–£12), various BYOB curry houses (£12–£18). Central London can be done cheaply — it just takes 10 minutes of planning.

Are tasting menus worth it? For the experience: yes, once. A £100–£150 tasting menu at a top London restaurant is a genuine event — 8–12 courses, theatre, craft. For value: no — the set lunch at the same restaurant (£35–£55) delivers the kitchen’s quality at a third of the price. Wine pairings (£60–£100 extra) double the bill — order a bottle or two glasses instead. Book 2–3 months ahead for the famous ones; lunch slots are easier to get.

How do I find good restaurants without spending hours researching? Hot Dinners (new openings), Michelin Guide (including Bib Gourmand — the value list), Google reviews 4.5+ with 500+ reviews (the volume filters fakes), and local food writers on Instagram. Ignore: TripAdvisor top-10s (gamed), any “best restaurant” listicle without dates, and restaurants with barkers outside (good restaurants don’t need to hustle tourists).

Drinks: the bill multiplier (and how to control it)

The drinks multiplier is the least-discussed part of London eating-out costs. Wine: £8–£14/glass in central London restaurants (the bottle that retails at £9 sells for £35) — two glasses each adds £32–£56 to a couple’s bill. Cocktails: £12–£18 each — two rounds doubles a casual dinner bill. Beer: £6–£8.50/pint central — the most “reasonable” alcoholic option. Soft drinks: £4–£5.50 — outrageous per-litre, but the cheapest way to keep the bill down.

Control strategies: BYOB restaurants (corkage £5–£15 — Brick Lane, many independents) — the single biggest drinks saving; one glass, not two (the second glass is where bills explode); tap water (free by law — always ask); house wine (often the best value on the list — restaurants price it to move); aperitif at the pub first (£5 pint vs £14 cocktail — pre-game economically). The honest maths: a £50 food bill becomes £85 with moderate drinking and service. Budget the all-in number (£80–£100 per person for a proper dinner), not the menu number — and you’ll never be shocked by the bill again.