The Sri Lankan menu is the star at the unassuming Baja Subs, which leans into Mexican food, takeaway corner store items, and Southeast Asian food alike. Diners will be hard-pressed to find a menu item over $16. Expect easy service at the steam table counter and browse the market side before going home.

A quick exit from the 210 Freeway puts one at Super Burger within minutes. Once there, order classic cheeseburgers, pastrami, chili cheese fries, or the deep-fried fish burger prepared by longtime owners Jean and Ben Khe. The cheeseburger is $7.95, while the $15.95 chicken teriyaki with rice and veggies can easily feed two.

Plan accordingly at this Sherman Oaks Sephardic pastry shop as the signature bourekas often sell out. The specialty item is stuffed in four different ways, including mushrooms with truffles and spinach with cheese. Co-owner Uzi Waizman’s proprietary dough is a mashup of phyllo and croissant and uses brown butter to deepen the flavor. To meet the demand, the Waizmans opened a second and bigger location in Van Nuys in 2024.

Though Hollywood’s Heng Heng specializes in poached Hainanese chicken available in both white and dark meat, the fried chicken is also a standout. Order the half-and-half over rice to get the best of both worlds and rest assured it still costs under $20.

Finding an affordable meal in glitzy West Hollywood isn’t the easiest task, but Super Rad Sub Shop’s entire menu is available for under $20. Try a bodega-style egg and cheese sandwich for breakfast or a chopped cheese for lunch. Breakfast comes in at $12, while lunch sandwiches run $16 to $18.

Virgil Village’s Vietnamese spot ensures that all stakeholders, from employees to locals in the neighborhood, win against the forces of gentrification. This means reasonably priced food that delivers deep, homemade flavors like banh mi, pork riblets, and tasty popcorn chicken.

Huge Tree Pastry specializes in fan tuan, a Taiwanese breakfast dish that consists of glutinous rice wrapped around a crispy rod of youtiao, pork floss, pickled mustard greens, and egg. The total cost for this utterly delicious and filling delight is only $5.50. Huge Tree Pastry is cash-only.

Liu’s Cafe serves Taiwanese-Hong Kong food in the heart of Koreatown. Think spicy wontons, Chiayi chicken over rice, and a mouthwatering braised pork belly — all priced at just over $10. The house-made pastries recall Hong Kong dessert shops with egg tarts, cookies, and pineapple buns that work great with iced milk tea.

Seoul-style convenience landed in Los Angeles with Slurp & Sip, a shop serving instant Korean ramen (ramyun), drinks, and snacks. Equipped with automated ramen machines, patrons choose a package of ramyun off the shelves before adding toppings like eggs, cheese, scallions, kimchi, and more. Ramyun starts at $5.99 with some toppings included in the base price.

Since 2004, Little Tokyo’s Aloha Cafe has prepared some of the region’s best stick-to-the-ribs meals. Try the big breakfast with two eggs, Portuguese sausage, and corn beef hash for $12.50. The loco moco made with a housemade ground beef patty, two eggs, and grilled onions on a bed of rice for $12.95 is rightfully popular.

Catch the wonderful aroma of fresh dough, cheese, and stewed tomatoes when approaching the Coop Pizza in the Palms. Owners Mike and Christina Fransen met at the Coop decades ago and now own the popular pizza spot together. A deeply satisfying New York-style cheese slice rings in at $3.50 or 75 cents more for a topping of pepperoni.

Located in a small Centinela Avenue strip mall, this unassuming Westside mainstay serves 19 types of pupusas, including classics like pork with cheese, and loroco with cheese, as well as vegan options like squash with potato, and beans with Soyrizo. Plus, there’s a full pastry case of sweets, along with bread and other baked goods to round out the meal.

Since 2019, Sunday Gravy (and its sibling owners) have become fully embraced by the Inglewood community. The surrounding neighbors remember their father who operated a pizzeria from the same space for decades. Chef Sol Bashirian makes delicious, home-style Italian food, including lasagna, garlic butter shrimp, garlic bread, chicken Parm, and a hearty Bolognese.