For the past six months, our food team has subsisted on a steady diet of kebabs, banh mi, Peruvian chicken, and other delicious meals-on-a-shoestring to find the 100 best cheap eats restaurants this area has to offer—all places where two diners can get a meal and drinks for under fifty bucks. Now, you can dig in too. Our annual Cheap Eats issue hits newsstands today (and the full list will be online soon).

What’s different this year? There were plenty of wondrous discoveries—the joys of Yemeni food, for instance, or the city’s best half-smoke (sorry, Ben’s), or some of the best mole we’ve ever tasted, hiding in a Hyattsville strip mall. We also decided to call out 25 places as the brightest stars on the scene—the most delicious barbecue, crave-worthy ramen, and tastiest tacos this city has to offer. Read on to find out about those—these restaurants are where we’ve had some of the most thrilling meals of the year. At any price.

The Best 25 Inexpensive Restaurants in Washington (listed alphabetically)

Amoo’s Restaurant – Persian

Bayou Bakery – Southern

Bob’s Shanghai 66 – Chinese/Taiwanese

China Bistro – Chinese

Cosmopolitan Grill – Bosnian/German

Cuba de Ayer – Cuban

Curry Leaf – Indian

Daikaya Ramen – Japanese

DCity Smokehouse – Barbecue

Eamonn’s – Irish

Enat – Ethiopian

G by Mike Isabella – Italian-American

Haute Dogs & Fries – American

Huong Viet Restaurant – Vietnamese

Jewel of India – Indian

Kogiya – Korean

La Caraquena – Venezuelan

Ravi Kabob House I and II – Pakistani

Rice Paper – Vietnamese

Ruan Thai – Thai

Rus Uz – Russian/Uzbek

Saba – Yemeni

Taqueria el Mexicano – Mexican

Thai Taste by Kob – Thai

Thip Khao – Laotian

Get Our “Brunches This Weekend” Newsletter The best breakfasts and brunches to try every weekend, plus our most popular food stories of the week. Or, see all of our newsletters. By signing up, you agree to our terms

Join the conversation!